Modelling in Seoul: Week 9 (Penultimate!)
- 3 days ago
- 6 min read
Learning some Korean history was at the top of the list for my penultimate week here in Korea. So I began my weekend at the National Museum of Korea where I learned a RIDICULOUS amount.
As someone who reads the text religiously I can say I was not bored once - which is quite the achievement! Especially as I was there for 5 hours.
I'd really recommend adding it to your itinerary if you are coming to Seoul. You can learn so much about Korean history because the majority of the galleries focus on Korean heritage - which is what I came to learn about so I’m glad!
I carried my notebook and jotted down some of my favourite facts, which ended up being 5 pages long but I've narrowed it down to my 5 favourite learnings below:
There are 4 guardians of Korea. The red phoenix, the white tiger, the blue dragon, the black tortoise - all of which have different roles.
The Joseon Dynasty (1392-1897) lasted approximately 500 years and was founded in 3 principles:
To suppress Buddhism in favour of Neo-Confucianism
To give allegiance to the Ming Dynasty
To abide by the theory of physiocracy.
Dragons were used to symbolise royalty due to their auspicious, powerful, and spiritual symbolism.
Buddhism originally came to Korea from China during the 3 Kingdoms period.
I learnt the 5 most common Mundrās (symbolic gestures made by Buddha or Bodhisattvas with hands or fingers!) Which I learnt all have specific meanings and some can only be done by certain Buddhas.
Then I raided the gift shop on the way out, and took a picture from the INSANE viewpoint above the museum which overlooked Namsan Tower, and Bukhansan mountain. (above)
Who wouldn’t want a Saturday filled with history and culture?
Followed by a Sunday filled with shopping and gluttony…
We finally got a chance to go to Mangwon, an area notoriously full of niche vintage shops! So we of course had to add it in and spent about 4 hours walking around the area where we went into a variety of vintage shops, of which I have listed the best below:
Chemical Sisters - cool, hip, reasonably priced.
Rody Vintage - Curated, Well priced, Designer.
Non-Non - Cool & Curated, Funky Music, Fashion gals everywhere, SUCH good pieces!!!
AD House - Vibey, Intense Incense smell, Good ratio of mens to womens
MartSuri - Small, niche, tad expensive
Then we somehow ended up walking into Hongdae without realising it, and I managed to find a birthday present for my brother (who I’m so excited to see!)
Monday was back to the working week - however as we are now T-minus 2 weeks till home time we no longer have castings and so unless I’ve booked a job I am free!
Meaning Monday was packed to the brim, starting with a visit to Dongdaemunn Design Plaza which was breathtakingly designed by Zaha Hadid. However the inside felt very dystopian, it was completely empty, no exhibitions in sight, it was just a vast space of white laminated floors and white painted walls.
Then I headed to Dongdaemunn fashion market, known for selling fabrics, trims, buttons, and anything a seamstress may ever need - and it didn't disappoint!
I was overwhelmed with choice and language barriers, so google translate became my best-friend. But I still managed to spend two hours in and amongst a jungle of lace, fabrics, and SO many patterns.
Sadly the suitcase room is not cooperating with me so I had to be restrained in my purchases, but I did get a few things to hopefully make something cool with when I get home!
Then I headed to Gwangjang food market as it was only a 15 minute walk. Which was so overwhelmingly busy, but had such a comforting aura to it.
The food was a fat culture shock, but the energy was friendly and you could tell a lot of the older Koreans had come straight from work to hang out with friends.
It was wholesome! I had some dumplings and some noodles obviously, and I think I may have eaten a chicken foot but that’s still a mystery…
Tuesday I failed to make a plan until I had actually stepped outside the house, but ended up at the Mok-in Museum which was beyond beautiful and, as it requires about 1000 steps walking completely 90 degrees it was completely unpopulated by tourists!
The museum is basically just a load of open space that is populated (thoroughly) with over 12,000 Mok-in stone and wooden statues - all originating from the Joseon Dynasty. It was seriously ethereal, with almost a heaven like aura.
I brought Betsy with me (my teddy bear) and showed her all the blooming flowers, and the overlooking mountains. It was probably the most picturesque place I’ve been in Seoul - even narrowly overtaking my beloved Palace!
After wandering, sitting, and thinking profusely for about two hours I got the bus to Jongmyo shrine which was much larger than anticipated, but also nothing amazing. One to tick off but definitely not a bucket list event.
Aoife joined me after this and we walked to Insadong cultural street so we could bulk buy a load of souvenirs! I ended up buying about 200 Norigae’s for everyone I’ve ever met.
Uber home was also worth mentioning as he started blasting his own music & gave a live performance - hilarious.
Wednesday I was trapped in a box with Parker… for work, obviously. We had a job together which was so cool! But also probably one of the strangest modelling experiences I’ve ever had.
The concept for the job was inspired by the film “Being John Malkovich” which involved us being placed inside a glass box that was a hybrid between an art exhibit, a cage, and a fishbowl.
It made the day feel even more animalistic than usual, as modelling can often make you feel like an animal pressured to perform for an audience, however today it was more than a metaphorical, we actually were animals having to perform.
The creative direction was quite vague, so me and Parker invented our own storyline to entertain ourselves: two girls visit a museum, get drugged and trapped in a museum display, desperately try to escape, and then grow eerily accepting of their fate. This resulted in a lot of pressing our faces against the glass, banging on the roof, and looking generally distressed (which wasn’t difficult after hours inside a glorified shoebox).
Weirdly though, by the end of the day we’d become fond of the box - outside of these characters - and even sat inside it voluntarily on our lunch break because it was oddly cosy without cameras pointed at us.
Sadly, minutes after wrapping the team took hammers to the box and smashed it in front of us. Talk about an animalistic experience! Humans destroying a home for no valid reason.
Thursday I woke up exhausted - the long days evidently got to me. So I didn’t force myself to do anything, other than one last impromptu casting, and beginning to pack!
Before then prepping and trying to get rid of my sudden onset acne before another exciting magazine shoot on Friday…
Friday entailed me being dressed in head-to-toe couture for a cool conceptual magazine editorial - which unfortunately comes out after I leave! However the shoot itself was such an experience. For starters I got my hair and makeup done in the changing room of a tennis club… which involved seeing a lot of naked Korean women.
Aside from that unnecessary nakedness the shoot itself was SO COOL. The moodboard was all shots of elegantly dressed chic women who just happened to be on a tennis court.
So I was dressed in Balenciaga SS26 (a show I remember live streaming last October - very full circle) and was running back and forth for the perfect candid shot of me with a tennis racket as if I were casually playing while dressed in thousands.
I was also dressed in Celine, Miu Miu, Sander, Jacquemus, Louis Vuitton, Ferragamo, Lacoste, and even a few more. All of which were from SS26 shows, and almost all of which I remembered from seeing them while reviewing the collections.
The shots should come out so sick, and although I won’t be here to get a physical copy I will get access to the digital files so you will be sure to see them!
It was a lovely end to a crazy week of sightseeing and working, and both of my jobs this week have been strangely creative for Korean modelling standards! So I definitely got lucky with that.
Now we are (crazily) moving into my tenth and final week here in Seoul which I know is populated with at least 3 jobs, and will be populated with as many last minute sights as I can fit in!
You’ll of course hear about it all.
With love,
Mimi x
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