The latest exhibition to dazzle Seoulites in Korea comes from an unexpected artist. Film director Tim Burton, known for his offbeat sense of the macabre, has his works of drawings, sculpture, paintings and film clips put together in an exhibition that delivers an unabashedly quirky glimpse inside the artists head.
The show has all the pieces you would expect from a Tim Burton exhibition. There’s the tragically dark body suit of Edward Scissorhands. The sinister but whimsical figurines and statues of The Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride. The comically evil candy stripe arms of Beetlejuice. Stark sketches of Frankenweenie and Catwoman’s battered skintight catsuit are all among the familiar standouts. However, there are also other more obscure and personal displays that hint at the inner life of Burton. One section features his childhood sketches of men, women, and strage creatures complete with his scribbled notes on who and what he imagines these beings to be. Whether born from a woman’s indiscretion with a microwave blender or stick boy and match girl’s unavoidably tragic fate his creations each possess a tinge of melancholy that infects the soul.
Highlights include a twisted clip of Hansel and Gretl escaping the witch who battles with splashes of colored paint. Then there’s the Disney years Tim spent as an animator and his unique take on the numbers one to ten that Sesame Street would never approve of. The exhibition runs until April so have no fear about missing it. You have plenty of time to tip toe through the mind of Tim Burton and marvel at all the weirdness inside.
December 12-April 14
Seoul Museum of Art, 37 Seosomun-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul
+82 2 2124 8800;
Tuesday-Friday 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Saturday-Sunday 10 a.m.-7 p.m.
₩12,000;
sema.seoul.go.kr
