Music Hall

The Music Hall is an authentic concert hall with a gross area of 19,604㎡ that has been acknowledged by world-renowned musicians. Since opening in 1988, the Music Hall has come to represent Seoul Arts Center, being well-loved by noted Korean and foreign performers. The Music Hall was highly praised by Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich and Ukrainian violinist Issac Stern. The whole building is often hailed as a huge instrument for itsexcellent sound and stage facilities, auditorium and other spaces. The Music Hall harmonizes traditional Korean aesthetics with a modern atmosphere. It has three main halls, which are the Concert Hall, the IBK Chamber Hall, and the Recital Hall. Other facilities include a rehearsal room, resting area for artists and 23 dressing rooms.

The Concert Hall is the first of its kind built exclusively for concerts in Korea. It boasts the best sound conditions and was renovated to accommodate 2,523 seats in 2005. The seats of the auditorium are designed artistically to suit the interior of the Concert Hall and thave become widerso as to assure audiences' comfort. The gold-colored metal handrails was replaced with wooden ones to create a more comfortable atmosphere. The number of seats for the disabled was increased from 14 to 16 at Block C on the first floor and 13 on Block A! on the second floor. Also, Flooring materials cork tiles and carpets were refurbished to minimize noise creation.

The IBK Chamber Hall with two floors of the auditorium is the Music Hall dedicated to chamber music.

The Recital Hall consists of two floors of auditorium and is suitable for concerts that require articulation rather than reverberation of sound. The number of seats there was increased to 354 during the renovation period in 2005. The Recital Hall has become a much tidier and more comfortable space by changing the seats and finishing of the walls. It will thus appeal more to new performers who dream of their debut stage, young performers who return from overseas studies to perform in Korea for the first time, chamber orchestras which touch the audience with a perfect harmony of ensemble, and musicians who introduce experimental music. A new passage was established behind the last row of the auditorium on the first floor to make it more convenient for the audience to move around. In addition, the seats for the disabled were moved to the right side of the first floor to make it easier to use the mobile seats.

Opera House

The Opera House, located in the center of the Seoul Arts Center, is a place where culture and arts meet to provide visitors with an unexpected pleasure. Since opening in 1993, it has been a a landmark of the Seoul Arts Center, which boasts a unique shape of a "gat," or Korean traditional hat made of bamboo and horsehair. The gross area of the circular building of the Opera House is 43,512㎡. It consists of space for performances and public space which is open to general visitors . The magnificent building of one underground floor and six floors above the ground hosts diverse genres of arts including opera, musical theater and ballet, from traditional to modern, and even avant-garde. Cultural pleasure at the Opera House's comes from the following three factors: the back stage which provides facilities which fully support performances ; comfortable seats which ensure that audiences enjoy performances comfortably; and resting areas where visitors can relax, shop and hold gatherings.

A representative space of the Opera House, the Opera Theateris a classical horseshoe-shaped theater with about 2,200 seats, decorated with a luxurious and ornate interior. It is a theater exclusively for opera and ballet. The proscenium arch shape of the Opera Theater allows the creation of a spectacular stage with a lively perspective. It is also possible to quickly transform the 450㎡-sized main stage, as well as the right, left and back stages using a computerized system. The sound facilities harmonize the clearness of the human voice and instrumental sounds by adjusting the reverberation time from 1.2 seconds to 1.5 seconds for the opera performance. Also, stage effects are maximized with high-tech sound and lighting equipments. The back stage includes 27 dressing rooms for performers as well as meeting rooms, a lounge for performers and storages. Technical staff, including those responsible for stage management, equipment, sound, and lighting realize a high-quality stage for performances.

The Towol Theater is under remodelling from August 2011 to December 2012.

The Jayu Theater is an experimental space which removes the barrier between the stage and the audience. The auditorium can be changed to accommodate up to 300 seats and to stage diverse genres of perfoming arts including Madangguk, or the Korean traditional drama. The height-adjustable stage enables the venue to stage three-dimensional and avant-garde performances while the lighting bridge, point hoist and other equipment are exposed in an open space., There are two group dressing rooms at the back stage as well as storages. Technical staff supportstage operation, equipment, sound, lighting, etc. to ensure that performances run smoothly.

Hangaram Art Museum

The Hangaram Art Museum is located on the left wing of Seoul Arts Center, being true to its function as a space for plastic arts. The Hangaram Art Museum , has been offering a comfortable atmosphere to visitors since opening in 1990. Dedicated to modern art, the venue is particularly well-loved by young people, Exhibitions open from 11 am to 8 pm during the summer (March~October) and from 11 am to 7 pm during the winter (November~February). The opening hours of exhibitions have been modified to enableoffice workers to visit them after work and people attending performances to spend some extra time at the art museum.

The museum, with a gross area of 15,540㎡, allows a good view of large works as the first and second floors are not divided..There are six exhibition rooms, storage rooms, art shops, which are equipped with temperature and humidity adjustment and lighting facilities. In particular, the luminous ceiling system enables a full appreciation of art works by creating a bright indoor atmosphere similar to natural light, The system has been receiving good responses from European museums which has adopted it prior to The SAC. Exhibition Room 1 and 2 are located on the first floor, Exhibition Room 3 and 4 on the second floor, and Exhibition 5 and 6 on the third floor. Caf? Matisse is located in the center of the lobby while an art shop is located next to the entrance on the first floor, selling books, accessories, art works, etc. The Shinsegae Square in front of the Hangaram Art Museum boastsa unique atmosphere, occasionally holding design marketsssuch as closed art market. Visitors can also find an outdoor cafe in front of the art museum and a Korean restaurant called 'Yehyang' down the stairs.

Seoul Calligraphy Art Museum

The Seoul Calligraphy Museum, which opened in 1988, is the world's first-ever exhibition venue dedicated to calligraphy. It is a place for traditional arts together with the National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts, outdoor nori madang (playground) and theKorean Garden. The oriental atmosphere of the calligraphy museum is the only one in the world which preserves the culture of the Chinese characters, and thus has been drawing many foreign visitors. Exhibitions are held at the 10 exhibition rooms on the first two floors and on the hallway, showing a harmonization of traditional beauty of past calligraphy works and modern calligraphy. On the fourth floor, the Culture Sarangbang (large meeting room (100 pyeong), and a small meeting room (37 pyeong)), which house events such as symposiums, seminars, meetings, ceremonies, lectures, and corporate trainings, are located. Reservations can be made to use such rooms.

There is also a calligraphy education academy which is open to the general public.

Hangaram Design Museum

The Hangaram Design Art Museum building consists of the following: the Design Art Museum and Cafe Design operated by the Seoul Arts Center on the first floor; the Korea National Archives of the Arts (KNAA) on the second floor and the third floor. KNAA consists of a reading room with an open shelves system (literature retrieval room) on the second floor and the visual and music room on the third floor. It has a wide variety of about 200,000 culture and arts information from Korea and overseas, which acts as a valuable source of information for the culture and art industry and general public.

The Seoul Arts Center's Hangaram Design Art Museum (1F) consists of Exhibition Room 1, 2, 3.
The size of the main exhibition room is 1,256㎡ which can be divided into Exhibition Room 1 and 2 (727㎡ for Exhibition Room 1, 555㎡ for Exhibition Room 2). The use of the venue is flexible as it can be transformed according to the characteristics of exhibitions.
The museum is intedned to raise the public awareness of design by holding exhibitions which combine artistiry and commercial viability. It eventually aims to establish a foundation for arts and culture of the 21st century with informationalized design commerce.

Culture Plaza

1) Music Plaza

The Music Plaza, located between the Music Hall and the Seoul Calligraphy Museum, is the main recreation area of the Seoul Arts Center. It accommodates diverse special programs and outdoor performances, such as outdoor movie festivals. The World Music Fountain, which is the most famous attraction of the Seoul Arts Center's Culture Plaza, as well as Cafe Mozart.

2) Stairs Plaza

The Stairs Plaza is a space for experimental, amateur programs which use stairs as a motive.

3) Shinsegae Square

The Shinsegae Square, dedicated to fine arts and performing arts, is located between the Hangaram Art Museum and the Hangaram Design Art Museum.