Last weekend I had the opportunity to see Tim Burton’s art exhibit at Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA) in Seoul. The exhibition has been travelling all over the world making stops in New York, Toronto, Los Angeles, Melbourne, Paris, and is now on its last stop in Seoul, South Korea.
It turns out that aside from being a film maker, Tim Burton also happens to be an artist and a busy one at that.
The man clearly never sleeps!
This exhibit holds 862 pieces of his art work including doodles on napkins, drawings, paintings, short films; not to mention all the costumes, movie props, poems, and even correspondence with editors who turned down one of his illustrated books because it was deemed too similar in style to Dr. Seuss.
The exhibition was divided into three phases. Surviving Burbank focused on the first eighteen years of Burton’s life and dealt with him trying to survive the boredom that comes with growing up in suburban California. Beautifying Burbank encompassed his time attending CalArts as well as his time working as an animator for Walt Disney, where there were a few artistic clashes due to Burton’s strange and somewhat gruesome style. The last stage, Beyond Burbank, looked at his latest body of works dating from 1985 to the present. This section focused on his films and how each of his characters came about through drawings.
What he envisioned on paper really is what you see on the movie screen.
Now a warning: if you do decide to visit the art gallery on a weekend afternoon, prepare to be shocked by the masses of people there. There was a line to buy tickets outside, then there was another line to get a number for admission (my wait time was an hour so my friend and I popped over to a nearby coffee shop), and once inside there was yet another line of people circling their way around the room for a look at the artwork. I daresay SeMA beats the MoMA in New York City in terms of its crowds.
However, there’s lots of people watching to do while you wait, like this girl I found sporting a bright pink furry hat. That’s some style, Seoul!
No photography was allowed inside the art gallery, so you only get a look at the main lobby and the halls, but what was inside was good!
Details
Dates: The exhibition runs from 2012/12/12 to 2013/04/14.
Admission: 12,000 won
Location: Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA)
Address: 37 Seosomun-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul
Hours: Tuesday-Friday 10 AM to 8PM, Saturday-Sunday 10 AM to 6 PM
Are you a fan of Tim Burton?
{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m not a huge fan of his movies but that’s just me, it’s not my thing. That said, I like the little world he built around his characters and his art in general. Quite imaginative and unique!
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I’ve enjoyed the style behind some of his most recent movies, but I remember watching “The Nightmare Before Christmas” as a child, and that left me terrified. A scrawny skeleton in a tuxedo isn’t really the thing for a 7 year old…
I went to this at the Moma a few years back. So cool!
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That’s so great that you got to see it in NYC! I completely missed the exhibition when it passed through my city in Toronto, so it was nice being able to catch it out here in Seoul.
I love Tim Burton’s movies so I would love to see this exhibition! I also prefer single-artist shows so you can see the evolution of the artist’s style so this one would be great.
Ashley of Ashley Abroad recently posted..Saturday Snapshot 14
This is one of the few solo artist exhibitions that I have seen in recent years, and I have to agree with you, it’s nice being able to see ‘the evolution’ of the artist (as cliche as that sounds). What I found most interesting was seeing how drawings that he had made over a decade ago still served as inspiration for some of his most recent movies!
This is fun! I wish you could tale pics inside the art gallery
memographer recently posted..On My Shelves. My Travel Bring-back Collection. Season 4
I wish so too, but it was so packed in there that it would have been very difficult to keep the lines moving around the gallery.
Wow!! Lucky! I LOVE Tim Burton, I would love to see this exhibit. Too bad about not being able to take photos inside
but even just the outside looks amazing! Thanks for sharing!
Rika | Cubicle Throwdown recently posted..Where in the world is Rika??
The pieces I was able to photograph in the lobby were but a tiny peek! What’s in there is truly impressive – some of the most colourful and strangest drawings I have ever seen!
I absolutely love Tim Burton!!
Then this is the exhibition for you!
I love Tim Burton’s movies and his unique artistic style! This exhibit sounds absolutely amazing! And your photos already give a good hint on what it must have looked like inside
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I have a 6 year old daughter and so always watch any of Tim’s movie with her. Love all of them so far as much as she does. I noticed in your pics of the exhibit that there are no kids, my daughter would love it! Alas we live in Phuket Thailand and I doubt we will ever see an exhibit like this here.
That’s really cool. I really like the space where the exhibition was held. Props to the furry hat! Is that what’s in now in Seoul?
Natalia | Always Trekking recently posted..River Climbing in Cebu – Moalboal, Philippines
Apparently so. I’d like to see someone in TO rocking that look!
I had no idea he made other forms of art. Cool stuff!
Stephanie – The Travel Chica recently posted..Photos from Central and South America: the best of the best and a few more that make me smile
Neither did I! I was amazed by his drawings -the man is truly talented!
I’m not that big of a fan of Tim Burton, but this exhibition looks rather interesting still. Do you happen to know where it will be stopping next?
- Maria Alexandra
nomadic translator @LatinAbroad recently posted..A year in travel (and life): My 2012 roller coaster ride
I’m pretty sure Seoul was the last stop on the exhibition’s round the world tour.
Oh wow, this looks really cool! My sister would be so jealous… she loves all things Tim Burton!
Amanda recently posted..What the Fook is a Loony Dook?
Not really a fan of Tim Burton’s films (let’s just say I am more focused on Asian Cinema haha), but that is one interesting exhibit!
Micamyx|Senyorita recently posted..Cebu Weekend Trip: Prelude to Sinulog Festival 2013
I missed out on the Tim Burton exhibit when it was in Paris (even though I’d walk past it nearly once a week!), just never got around to checking it out — so thanks for the photos so I feel like I still saw a bit of it!
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I missed it when it passed through my home city of Toronto too, so it was nice being able to catch it out here in Seoul.
I didn’t know Tim Burton was an artist as well. Even though you couldn’t take pictures inside the exhibit, what you did captured looks very dreamlike. It must take forever to install an exhibit like this one.
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wow! that’s one awesome exhibit! i wish it also stopped in sydney, i’d have gone for sure
it would be fun too if people dressed up as their favourite tim burton character 
Yeah, oh man… just the lobby looks astounding. Wish I could visit!
Colleen Brynn recently posted..Home For The Holidays
Oh man, that looks amazing! There are so many cool things that go to Seoul and for some reason skip Bangkok, I don’t understand it! Man, I miss that city.
Elizabeth recently posted..west coast
This looks like so much fun! I had no idea that Tim Burton had this much of an off-screen oeuvre. I would have loved to check out the exhibit, thanks for sharing!
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The exhibition is divided into three parts. The first part, titled Surviving Burbank covers his younger years from 1958 to 1976. He was born Timothy Walter Burton in Burbank, California, United States. He was an introvert with a wild imagination that often gave birth to unique creations. The second, Beautifying Burbank, covers the years 1977 to 1984 including his time with Cal Arts and Walt Disney. Most of his work in that period was based on his fascination with childhood fantasies, inspiring the wacky but humorous Tim Burton characters that many of us recognize today. The last segment of the exhibition, Beyond Burbank, covers his most productive years from 1985 to the present. This is the period in which he created the great movies that made him world famous.
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Oh my gosh, I would LOVE to go this. I’m such a big Tim Burton fan! So jealous!
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