Hongdae Streets - Graffiti Edition

The Two Crude Mandudes have finally reunited after a 2 year hiatus and it feels good! A new podcast is the works but until then, I have a new feature to hold you over. It's no secret that Hongdae is the most vibrant neighborhood in Seoul, and I'll be living in and documenting the area over the next few months. So far I've been overwhelmed with how much there is to see beyond the normal sites and sounds I used to get on my weekend trips here. I am really excited to bring to you a detailed look at the streets of Hongdae!





Hondgae is one of the few places I can think of in Seoul where you can find an abundance of street art of various types. By far, my favorite is the graffiti.

Most modern graffiti in the US seems to be about "bombing" or tagging territory, just getting your name out for people to see in the quickest way possible. The cool thing about the graffiti here is the vast majority of it is quite artistic, and in my opinion makes the general street aesthetic more exciting and diverse.

There aren't a lot of mediums for people to sincerely express themselves through in Korean life, and I find a good amount of the pieces I find here have a political context I rarely see in other aspects of Korean culture.

I also love the creative way the artist incorporate the landscapes in their work.

Look forward to next week's Hongdae Streets which will focus on a unique aspect of Korean neighborhood's - residential gates