Hyundai Daegu, The Forum
The Hyundai Daegu focuses on ‘culture’ and ‘arts.’ The renovated space has a total area of 5,047m2 of cultural and art-related facilities, four times more than the previous area of 1,267m2. The increased space for culture and arts is achieved by reducing the ‘store area’ by nearly 15%. Given that sales are usually proportional to store area, The Hyundai Daegu’s bold attempt to dedicate an entire floor of a department store to a cultural space is an extraordinary endeavor, which has never been done by any department store in the country.
The highlight of the newly renovated space of The Hyundai Daegu is ‘The Forum by Jaime Hayon,’ a 4,565m2 cultural space and cafe that occupies the entire floor at the top of the building. In collaboration with Jaime Hayon, The Forum occupies both the interior space and outdoor garden on The Hyundai Daegu’s 9th floor.
This is also an exceptional effort to establish an open space for the public outside Seoul in collaboration with a world-renowned designer, since cultural facilities in Korea are concentrated in Seoul, the capital city of Korea.
The Forum consists of the Café Walking Cup, created out of Jaime Hayon’s design, the Colosseum, an indoor plaza to host performances and lectures, and the Gates Garden, an outdoor sculpture park with seven large statues as tall as 9 meters.
In addition, The Forum Shop presents a diverse collection of design products, each deeply inspired by the space’s unique design elements, and complements this with an exhibition unveiling the creative process behind Hayon’s work. Green House offers a space for customers to relax and rest in an indoor greenhouse.
The Forum at The Hyundai Daegu is the third collaboration between the Hyundai Department Store Group and Jaime Hayon. Through such collaborative efforts, the group has created authentic and artistic spaces within the retail environment.
“The collaboration with The Hyundai Daegu was special since it provided me an opportunity to deliver artistic inspiration and vitality to people of our time who are tired of reality and losing their surprise. I wanted to give the experience of traveling to a new planet as people move through this space made of various structures” Jaime Hayon.
