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| Scenes from the Haribo-themed immersive media content, "Wild Gummy Sanctuary," on view at the exhibition "Welcome to the Haribo World," at the Insa Central Museum in downtown Seoul / Courtesy of Peopulley |
Exhibition presents history, imaginary stories of gummy bear
By Park Han-sol
Haribo's instantly recognizable collection of multihued gummy bears has arrived in Seoul for its first-ever media art exhibition.
Held as a centennial celebration of the global confectionery brand's signature Goldbears, "Welcome to the Haribo World" has turned the Insa Central Museum in downtown Seoul into a 1,300-square-meter interactive universe of mouth-watering gelatinous sweets.
The show, co-hosted by Haribo and Seoul-based digital content company Peopulley, aims to visualize the jelly brand's 100-year history while dazzling visitors' eyes with immersive media technology and hands-on activities, according to curator Lee Myung-ho.
"Under the theme of 'Unleash Your Inner Child,' the exhibition is meant to wow visitors of all ages with its colorful glitter, while introducing how the confectionery brand has led the last century with an army of 1.5-centimeter-tall teddy bear-shaped jellies," he told The Korea Times.
Lee's dream of curating the Haribo-themed show was realized after he flew all the way to Germany and knocked on doors at the company's headquarters, as well as the original Bonn-based Haribo Store, with handwritten letters back in 2018.
"Welcome to the Haribo World" starts with "Hariboian's Room," a jelly-obsessive collector's bedroom brought to life with an archive of stuffed toys, clothes, mugs and magazines all featuring the animal-shaped sweets.
What follows is a series of media art-focused sections, decked with projection mapping, augmented reality and stop-motion animation.
A mirrored room with motion sensors transforms people facing the reflective surface into gigantic Goldbears gummies of any one of six colors and flavors. "Wild Gummy Sanctuary" invites viewers to an imaginary, digitally rendered forest that is home to gelatinous wildlife.
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| Digitally rendered installation view of the media art exhibition "Welcome to the Haribo World" / Courtesy of Peopulley |
There is also Haribo Square, with a candy store, beauty salon, cafe, record shop and a cinema dotting the jelly-filled 100th Avenue.
One of the notable sections of the exhibition is the Hans Riegel Library, a visual archive of the brand's century-old history. Named after the company's founder, the room presents everything from the gummy design studio ― with sketches, plaster prototypes and molds ― to the origin story of Goldbears.
Sweets maker Riegel used a recipe for pastilles to produce the first fruit-flavored gummy bear named Tanzbaren in 1922. With looks resembling the real-life animal much more closely than the present-day version, Tanzbaren came in two colors: yellow and purple.
The sugary bears were then rebranded in 1960 as Goldbaren, or Goldbears, which we all know today, with the slogan edited to target adults in addition to its already established fan base of children. After gaining success throughout Europe, the brand entered the U.S. market in 1982.
The show's highlight is marked by a carnival zone featuring an array of jelly-themed interactive activities, including a photo booth equipped with a trampoline and a game that can be played on a digital screen projected onto the entirety of all four walls.
Before leaving the museum, visitors can witness how the iconic bear-shaped sweets have been reinterpreted by five contemporary artists of Korea on the surface of a moon jar and on canvas.
"Welcome to the Haribo World" runs through March 12, 2023, at the Insa Central Museum.
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