DESIGN PAVILION

Built in 1945, the Dongil Rubber Factory was a trailblazer in the rubber belt industry for 35 years. For the next 40 years, it became a place of quiet respite, as the smell of rubber gradually faded and the piercing sounds of machinery fell silent.

The exhibition presents a façade crafted from leftover rubber belts, along with architectural design projects for the abandoned factory, created by Professor Kim Myun and industrial design students from Pukyong National University.

Often referred to as the “tears of trees,” rubber has accompanied humanity throughout history, thanks to its remarkable elasticity and flexibility. From automobiles and spacecraft to toys and architectural materials, rubber has played a vital role in shaping the world we live in. From natural to synthetic rubber, and onward to sustainable alternatives, discover the ever-evolving story of this remarkable material.

What can design do for the ocean, the people, and the environment?

Discarded rubber scraps, worn-out fishing nets, and styrofoam all get a new breath of life through the creative and careful hands of artists.

From film, visual media, to fashion, product design, furniture, craft, and packaging, the exhibition explores contemporary design in action, revealing new ways to rethink materials, challenge conventions, to shape a more hopeful future.

This exhibition is born from the outcomes of the visual identity workshop, with members of DRB’s Experience Design collaborative body taking part.

Life evolves, buildings weather, cities rise anew, and technology is reborn again and again. Designers who translate change into possibility peer into the cell—the smallest building block of all existence—and confront the entire universe contained within. Just as a single cell holds the weight of a whole cosmos, visitors step into the exhibition to become cells themselves, experiencing tiny, interconnected universes weaving together.