I Art Seoul promotes community culture
Fabienne Valmond stands in front of I Art Seoul in Gyeongnidan, Seoul, during the grand opening on Jan. 5. / Courtesy of Jennae Lee Photography
By Hallie Bradley
One of the best ways to meet people and learn about neighbors is to visit community spaces and the Gyeongnidan area has a new one livening up the scene.
I Art Seoul is an art and community space that curates a variety of events each week. Started by Fabienne Valmond, there are an average of 12 events a week with some being curated entirely in house, others a collaboration, and still others a rental of space for private events. Events include film nights, game nights, an open mic night, language exchanges, speed dating, yoga, art soirees and pop-up brunches ― and that is just the in-house events. Other groups have come in to host a Romanian Easter celebration, various concerts, and this summer has seen an increase in markets for children's clothing swaps and sales and crafts, too.
Valmond says she is more of an arts, history and culture buff, so it was “surprising even to me that the most memorable event so far has been the screening of Game of Thrones (GOT). It is perhaps because GOT is sort of a pop culture phenomenon. It was memorable because it was the biggest event we ever hosted ― averaging 40 people per screening for five weeks and about 60 for the grand finale. But more than that, the audience embodied my idea of community because they were so accommodating.”
Want to feel the pulse of an area? Community spaces are where to do just that and Valmond is listening to the locals and neighbors and seeing good things.
“Oftentimes, people had to squeeze in tight and sit on the floor because we ran out of seats or we would mess up their drink orders or couldn't start the screening on time because of technical difficulties but not once did anyone ever complain or lose patience,” she said.
“Community spaces are important not only because they bring people together, but because they are less resource-straining and allow people that may not have the means to own their own spaces to have access to an affordable space to use,” Valmond explained.
The space has been a big hit in an area that has seen a large decline in local businesses recently due to the departure of U.S. military personnel from nearby Yongsan Garrison. The I Art Seoul space has begun to garner attention from the neighborhood. Valmond is now looking to work in conjunction with local businesspeople like TV personalities Hong Seok-cheon and Julian Quintart to revitalize the Gyeongnidan area. They kicked off a season of creativity and revitalization with the Gyeongnidan Street Festival at the end of June.
Fabienne Valmond cuts the tape to open I Art Seoul in Gyeongnidan, Seoul, during the grand opening on Jan. 5. / Courtesy of Jennae Lee Photography
Valmond originally came to Korea in 2018 to pursue a Ph.D.
“The idea for the space came out of my frustration in finding the types of events that I enjoyed doing when I lived in Paris and Washington, D.C., such as classical film screenings, art performances, and live painting,” she said.
With the idea for the space, she first went to the Seoul Global Business Center which informed her of the OASIS program which is designed to allow technically savvy people to bypass the 300 million won required to secure an investment, by requiring individuals to complete a number of classes related to intellectual property rights laws among other things. The program provides invaluable mentoring, free office space for a year and assistance with things like business registration. It took Valmond five months and now she's been hosting events for just over five months.
This week's activities include a screening of
on Wednesday, a
and
on Thursday, a
on Friday, and a
on Saturday. There is also a
on Friday and Saturday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Next Tuesday, there is a
to discuss Margaret Atwood's “The Handmaid's Tale.”
Join the community and see what is going on at I Art Seoul by visiting their calendar of events at
and reach out if you have an idea for an event to host there.
Hallie Bradley is a writer based in Seoul and also has the blog thesoulofseoul.net.