National Museum of Korea ? Ichon Station Underpass
'Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK' Opens on Dec. 27

  On December 27, at 16:00, the National Museum of Korea will hold the Opening Ceremony of the 'Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK', the Ichon Station underpass that connects Ichon Station (line 4) and the National Museum of Korea.

  The National Museum of Korea is the 9th most visited Museum in the world, the 1st in Asia, attracting more than 3 million visitors annually (2010 base, the Art Newspaper 2011). Every year, more than 1.8 million domestic and global visitors, about 60%, take the subway to visit the Museum. The National Museum of Korea and the Seoul City have joined hands to build an underpass that connects the Ichon Station and the Museum to provide visitors a more pleasant experience.

  The full length of the 'Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK' is 255m long, composed of 160m long moving walkway and 95m long museum precincts where various exhibitions, concerts, and events can be held. The construction took 2 years and 8 months to complete since the Groundbreaking Ceremony in April, 2010.  

  Following several consultation meetings, Kim Young Se, CEO of Inno Design, was responsible for the interior design of the 'Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK' to fully portray the significance of the Museum as the treasure house of the Korean traditional cultural heritage and as a window to introduce Korean culture. The motive of the design was the symbol of the National Museum of Korea, 'Korea' and 'our heritage', and taegeuk (yin-yang) marks are decorated in a contemporary way on one side of the wall while masterpieces of the Museum on the other. The ceiling and the floor of the underpass are decorated with four trigrams of Taegeuki, the flag of the Republic of Korea. 

  The exit canopy, the ground structure that connects the Museum precincts and the underpass, has been designed by Park Seung-Hong, the architect of the National Museum of Korea. The all-glass exit canopy boasts its unique feature that harmonizes with the surrounding scenery.

  The name 'Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK' was selected from a naming contest, and it was chosen among the 383 entries for the name implies a road that will lead the visitors to the precious cultural heritage where they will return with sincere impression and appreciation.  

  The Opening Ceremony will be held at the 'Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK' and the 'Special Exhibition Gallery' on December 27, at 4pm, where Minister Choe Kwang-shik of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, renowned museum and cultural experts, people who have entered the naming contest, and public and private officials will attend. Furthermore, a special exhibition 'the road that we have traveled, and our future step' will be presented at the 'Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK' to introduce the activities and future plans of the Museum at its current location in Yongsan while looking back on the past century of museums in the Republic of Korea.

  The 'Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK' will become the most pleasant and convenient entrance to the museum regardless of weather. Also, the air will be filled with expectations and excitement of visitors who have escaped from busy lives to meet the beautiful cultural heritage that our ancestors have left behind.

The front view of the Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK

Taegeuk marks decorated on one side of the wall(By Kim Young Se, CEO of Inno Design)

Masterpieces of the museum decorated on the other side of the wall(By Kim Young Se, CEO of Inno Design)

The exit canopy of the Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK(Designed by Park Seung-Hong)

A place to gain information on the NMK

A cultural complex(a special exhibition in celebration of the Nadeulgil, Underground Path to NMK Opening)