WEBZINE ACC

Lee Seul-a, Lee Ggot-nim, Baek On-yu, Seong Hae-na, Kim Hwa-jin, Lee Mi-sang, Kim Mella, Seong Hye-ryeong, Lee Seo-su, Jeong Seon-im, Ham Yoon-i, Hyeon Ho-jeong.

Lee Seul-a, Lee Ggot-nim, Baek On-yu, Seong Hae-na, and Kim Hwa-jin were selected as the top 5 writers in the “2023 Young Writers Who Will Shape the Future of Korean Literature” poll conducted by the cultural content platform Yes24 (with the participation of approximately 400,000 online readers). Lee Mi-sang, Kim Mella, Seong Hye-ryeong, Lee Seo-su, Jeong Seon-im, Ham Yoon-i, and Hyeon Ho-jeong are writers who received the “2023 14th Young Writer Award.”

“I will send you a letter every day by email.”

On Sat, Oct. 21, at 3 PM, a book talk by author Lee Seul-a took place at the ACC. Lee Seul-a is the author of the top-ranked independent publishing work in 2018 (Daily Lee Seul-a) and the author who ranked first in the vote for young writers who will lead the future of Korean literature in 2023. In 2018, she made a complete breakthrough with her “self-serial project known as ‘Daily Lee Seul-a,’ a unique essay subscription service where she sent one essay per day to subscribers’ emails, all to repay her student loans, even though no one asked her to do so.”

The Age of Subscriptions

Futurist Jeremy Rifkin argued in his book The Age of Access (2001) that “ownership is no longer necessary.” Rifkin says, “A new stage of capitalism has begun, where we not only borrow and use objects but also pay for human experiences.” Now, just like this “prophecy,” we have entered the era of connectivity and subscription.

Nowadays, people no longer buy CDs; instead, they listen to music through platforms like YouTube or Melon, and for movies, they rely on streaming services such as Netflix, Watcha, and Apple, rather than purchasing DVDs or going to the cinema. Books are no exception. They subscribe to services like Kindle Unlimited instead of purchasing physical books. The reason it became a phenomenon is precisely because it is on a trajectory like this flow.

A Space for Empathy, Communication, and Connection,
Reading at ACC

The Culture Information Center is located at the physical center of the ACC space. The Culture Information Center presents itself as aiming to “research and collect Asian cultural resources and provide a space where books, archives, and exhibition content can be viewed and experienced as an Asian Culture Museum.” While art theaters, cultural creative centers, and children’s cultural centers are focused on performances, exhibitions, and events, the Culture Information Center can be described in a nutshell as a new version of a library.

If libraries of the past were limited to the role of passive spaces for book storage, borrowing, and studying for exams and coursework, libraries today aim for cultural enjoyment and creative spaces that emphasize empathy, communication, and connection. In that sense, the title “Culture Information Center” carries meaning, rather than the name “library.”

The upcoming “Reading at ACC” is also in line with this trend. It is not just about storing and lending books, but actively arranging meetings and conversations with authors. At author Lee Seul-a’s book talk, the audience leaned against bean bag sofas or sat on camping chairs instead of traditional classroom chairs to listen to the author’s stories on an outdoor stage. During the following Q&A session with the author, there were readers who shared their practical concerns about pursuing writing as a full-time career, readers who shared their personal lives, including congratulatory messages to the recently married author (Lee Seul-a and her colleague, photographer Lee Hweon-nim), and even readers who simply came because they wanted to see the author and recommend a vegan restaurant that the author might like. In this way, the library becomes a space that promotes empathy, communication, and connection.

After the book talk lasting about two hours, the stage smoothly transitioned to a jazz performance. Amidst the lively jazz performance, the natural footsteps of people exploring the exhibited books graced the stage. Various participatory programs such as “Recommendations for Life-changing Books,” “Transcription Experience,” and “Creating an Anthology Together” were held. At one booth, there was also a reading consultation with an MBTI expert, while another was simultaneously running a book donation campaign for a beautiful store.

The philosopher Gaston Bachelard, in his book The Poetics of Space, speaks about the importance of space in the following way. “Space calls for action, and before action, it is the realm where imagination is active. Imagination sharpens and goes to cultivate the field.” Imagination seems to be one of the powerful engines that lead our lives, and reading books and engaging in cultural and artistic experiences have great potential to be endless sources for imagination. That is why there are high expectations for the ongoing cultural and artistic events at ACC and the creative spaces it provides.