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[wylies99]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2915406
Museums turn works of art into hot commodities

Not many people go to museums or art galleries just to buy a tea pot or a handbag, but that�s beginning to change. The artfully crafted, limited-edition fashion pieces that have begun cropping up at galleries around Seoul are drawing a new kind of visitor into the art world - the shopper.

National Museum of Korea

The National Museum of Korea is one of the museums that is attracting new visitors by stocking their gift shop with high quality, designer items.

Designer Kim So-ra, who is with the Cultural Foundation of National Museum of Korea, was wearing a set of tumi earrings that she had designed for the museum when the JoongAng Sunday Magazine met with her there earlier in the month.

The earrings, which sell for 9,000 won ($ a pair, are part of the museum�s efforts to raise the quality of their souvenirs and encourage visitors to purchase gift items from the museum rather than at tourist streets or markets.

The tumi earrings were designed in conjunction with the current exhibition, �The Great Myth and Mystery of Peruvian Civilization: Inca.� A tumi is a ceremonial knife used in some Inca cultures.

�I always design things that I myself would like to wear and to buy,� Kim said.

The foundation�s cultural product team was established in 2005. Prior to that, all of the items in the museum�s store were being sold on commission. In fact, the goods sold in the store were the same as the ones being sold in the tourist neighborhood of Insa-dong and in the back alleys of Namdaemun Market. Most of the products were made by small businesses in China, which made it impossible to manage their quality and gave the souvenirs a cheap look and feel.

The cultural product team�s first task was to come up with a series of products that would reflect the museum�s reputation for quality. But they went through a long process of trial and error. They found it was difficult to set prices for their products because the ones sold in Insa-dong were relatively inexpensive. They also had a hard time looking for a domestic manufacturer because they wanted all of the materials to be made in Korea.

�Most of the domestic sewing factories no longer exist,� said Kang Jeong-eun, a textiles designer. �We could barely find one sewing factory in Daegu to manufacture stuffed dolls for us,� she continued.

There are significant differences between museum souvenirs and the souvenirs available at tourist sights. According to the museum, the items have to be cultural products that embrace Korean culture and history. That�s why the museum�s designers must be familiar with the items in the museum�s collection.

�We believe it�s the designers� job to make relics into cultural products so that the public will become more familiar with them,� designer Kim So-ra said.

The team�s efforts have paid off. In the past five years, they have developed 1,000 products, for both practical and decorative use, and demand for these products has increased.

In the beginning, the demand for luxurious souvenirs was beyond the team�s expectations. Despite its high price of 120,000 won, one of the most popular souvenirs was a set of coffee cups and saucers designed after the gilt-bronze art pieces of the Baekje Kingdom (18 B.C.?660).

These days, �products that successfully combine practical use and tradition are a hit,� said Kim Sun-ah, the museum�s stationery designer. Popular items include a paper pencil case inlaid with a mother of pearl design for 7,000 won, a watch with numbers written in Chinese characters for 22,000 won and a necktie with Korean lettering for 30,000 won, she said.

A wide range of cultural handicrafts are also in great demand. A set of wooden ornaments priced at around 23,000 won and a purse made with traditional fabrics priced at 30,000 won are two of the more popular items.

Word about the quality of the items has spread, which has helped the museum attract new customers.

�The National Museum of Korea itself has become a brand signifying luxurious souvenirs,� publicist Lee Hyun-young of the Cultural Foundation of National Museum of Korea said.

�Rose-decorated kitchen mittens and aprons [priced at 37,000 won] are also drawing great interest,� designer Kim So-ra said. But in this case, it was not the cultural value of the items that attracted customers. Sales increased when First Lady Kim Yoon-ok was pictured wearing it.

(Read the rest at the above link)

[wylies99]

I can tell you from experience that the gift shop in the National Museum of Korea has some very nice things to send home, and much of it is not expensive. You can visit the gift shop without entering the museum.

[Juregen]

[VanIslander]

[wylies99]

[wylies99]