Hyundai Motor Group opens hands-on science pop-up in Seoul with Exploratorium

Hyundai Motor Group said on Oct 6 that it is holding the hands-on science exhibition “Have Fun with Science” at Hyundai Motorstudio Seoul until Dec 15, in cooperation with San Francisco’s Exploratorium. Maeil Business reported the show is on the venue’s fifth floor and is part of a strategic partnership signed with the Exploratorium in April. Seoul Economic Daily gave the run as Oct 6 to Dec 15. Hankook Ilbo reported from a media event on the opening day and said admission is free. [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]

The exhibition has 12 hands-on exhibits covering basic science principles such as movement, ecology, light and sound, the reports said. Named exhibits include a balancing challenge on a moving board, a domino chain demonstrating energy laws, a teamwork game in which participants move wooden blocks together, and a work showing how wind forms sand dunes, according to Maeil Business and Seoul Economic Daily. Three standing programmes using electric circuits and electronic devices also run, and visitors can join a “Drawing Machine” workshop by advance booking or on-site registration. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]

Maeil Business reported that all exhibitions and programmes are free for visitors who join the Hyundai Motorstudio membership, and Hankook Ilbo said admission is free. Maeil Business, Seoul Economic Daily and Hankook Ilbo reported that an opening-evening programme for adults, “Spin the Night”, was held on Oct 6, including “Science of the Cocktail”, where cocktails are explained scientifically, and “Take Apart”, in which visitors disassemble everyday electronic devices. [ 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]

The Exploratorium, founded in 1969 by physicist Frank Oppenheimer, introduced the “hands-on” approach in which visitors touch and experiment with exhibits rather than only observing, the documents said; Seoul Economic Daily placed it at Pier 15 on the Embarcadero in San Francisco. Asia Economy said the museum draws close to 750,000 visitors a year and that Frank Oppenheimer was the brother of nuclear physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, a detail Hankook Ilbo also gave. Hankook Ilbo reported Exploratorium officials attended the pop-up. [ 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 ]

Hyundai Motor Group said it will collect visitor reactions during the exhibition and use them in the content and operation of the planned GBC museum. Asia Economy reported the 2032 museum will have three halls — art, experiment and eco — with 300 hands-on exhibits, and that the 12 exhibits now at Motorstudio Seoul will also be shown there. It said this is the second such pop-up, after one at Hyundai Motorstudio Goyang in 2024. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 ]

Jung Sung-won, the group’s vice president for HMG brand experience, said the GBC museum aims to nurture individual inquiry and create new ground for science education in Korea, and that the group is listening to visitor views to adjust content, Maeil Business and Asia Economy reported. Yonhap quoted him hoping many people gain curiosity about science through hands-on content relatively unfamiliar in Korea, and Newsis reported him saying science asks “why” while technology finds answers to “how”. Hankook Ilbo quoted him saying the group focused on the idea that innovative technology emerges when creative questions are asked through science. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 6 ]

Korea Economic Daily carried essentially only a headline about the exhibition, its page otherwise filled with unrelated company stories. [ 7 ]