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Korean soft culture reigns at HiKR Ground
According to Brand Finance’s Global Soft Power Index, Korea ranked 12th in the world in terms of soft power in 2022, a placement attributed mostly to the dominance of the country’s pop culture through streaming services.
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span id="docs-internal-guid-ea2c870b-7fff-18f4-9a32-8dd8482d9cac">According to Brand Finance’s Global Soft Power Index, Korea ranked 12th in the world in terms of soft power in 2022, a placement attributed mostly to the dominance of the country’s pop culture through streaming services. Also known as hallyu, the Korean wave has also been washing over Indonesia and its people for years.
Whether it’s a day tour of Nami Island, Ulsan or a simple bike tour through Incheon, guides will always point out famous sights, the same spaces used for Winter Sonata, Extraordinary Attorney Woo and Guardian: The Lonely and Great God, respectively. These are just three of the hundreds of Korean dramas that have gripped the world in recent years.
In Seoul, the displays of soft culture were not as eccentric as at HiKR Ground. Founded under the Korea Tourism Organization, the venue was a platform for visitors to experience tourism content, including pop music, Korean dramas, and regional festivals. The five-story building was filled with hallyu content from top to bottom, a haven for enthusiasts and fans from around the world who came to the country for this specific reason.
Visiting on the first week of December, the atmosphere was made even more special as the BTS Army welcomed the birthday of one of BTS’ members, Seokjin, who turned 31 on Dec. 4. Walking toward the building, the panoramic media wall that usually shows HiKR’s spatial brand and identity was covered with life-size pictures of the vocalist.
Continuing to the second floor, the K-pop Ground is a zone for multimedia experience where fans can explore various concepts and create their own contents through XR technology, such as live studios and music video stages. The spaces are divided into five locations: inside a subway, a coin laundromat, a color room, a spaceship and a large stage with the cosmos as a background.
Similar to the first floor, there is a large installation of Seokjin, surrounded by balloons and a banner that spells “Happy Jinday”. There are also three cardboard cutouts of him in the laundromat and another of him holding what appears to be the planet Venus on the stage.
Not to be beaten by the second floor, the third, as the building’s special exhibition hall, draws as much attention from all K-pop fans. A timeline of his expansive career spans the wall, complete with stalls where fans can leave their well wishes for the artist. A larger-than-life installation of the singer holding a tuna fish against an ocean background is a nod to his single, “Super Tuna”, released in 2021.
His photos were also displayed on the vertical media tower that stretched between the third and fourth floor. Usually, the tower was used to display Korean culture. However, if Seokjin’s celebration festivities are anything to go by, the paths left by entertainers have become the epitome of culture itself.
This week, the fourth and fifth floor showed a distinct disconnect to the floors beneath them. For one, there were no photos of Seokjin or any of the BTS members. The fourth floor was more about K-drama, offering fans an experience to meet Korean celebrities through VR technology. The fourth floor also shows an exhibition on Korean wellness, another form of soft culture that has become widespread in other parts of the world.
The HiKR Cave is a multi-experiential zone where visitors can “feel” local tourist attractions in Korea, such as its vast wellness attractions and tourist hub cities, using diverse senses. The cave is filled with reeds throughout the walkway. With a waterfall falling on one side of the walls and fog that emits a calmer and relaxing aroma, the small walkway transports visitors into a dreamlike fantasy, far from the hustle of Seoul.
Behind the cave, there is a machine that offers visitors a quiz about the state of their body. After answering a few questions, the machine is able to recommend a free cup of Korean tea based on the answers. Visitors are encouraged to purchase a few bags, of course, for the promise of better health.
Derived from the era of the Three Kingdoms, which spanned from 18 BCE to the year 660 CE, drinking a cup of tea can be both a daily ritual and a healing ceremony for Koreans. With at least six kinds of traditional tea, the beverage is now regarded as a traditional medicine for locals.
Some of the teas include daechu-cha, made with dried jujubes, which are used to treat anxiety and insomnia, as well as maesil-cha, made with green Korean plums and which has the ability to relieve symptoms of food poisoning and diarrhea, detoxify the body and provide aid in digestion.
Finally, the top floor consists of the HiKR Lounge, where people from around the world can mingle and interact with each other. The terrace offers an exceptional view of the famous Cheonggye-cheon stream. For Indonesians, the stream is a must-see after President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo joked on Instagram that it reminded him of the Ciliwung River in Jakarta.
