Bling Flea Market @ Platoon Kunsthalle

Last Saturday night I went with some of my Taekwon-Do friends to the Bling Flea Market in Apgujeong / Cheongdam, Seoul. We wanted to support one of our members, Bia, who was the DJ for the first part of the evening. Already you should be wondering why would a flea market require a DJ, why is it held at night time, and why is there a flea market in Apgujeong, one of the richest areas in Seoul? Well, the monthly Bling Flea Market is no ordinary flee market, and it is held at no arbitrary place, but at Seoul’s Platoon Kunsthalle.

“Platoon Kunsthalle is build of 28 iso cargo containers” which are “stacked” to “form a unique construction that can be rebuilt anywhere else any time,” and its purpose is to function as a “space [for] subculture in Asia,” focused on those “cultural movements” that occur “beneath the radar,” “like street art, graphic design, fashion, video art, programming, music, club culture, political activism, etc.” [Edited from About Platoon.]

The Bling Flea Market, organized by The Bling Magazine, is mostly a place where new and second hand clothing, often of a vintage variety, and other odd stuff are available at very affordable prices. Many of the vendors are in the fashion industry themselves, like models and young designers. I bought a scarf and a tie which I’ll show case in some self-portraits some time.

Speaking of portraits, look what I found on the Net. Yes, that is me, caught on camera by The Xoxo Kids at the Bling Flea Market. Definitely not one of the best portraits of me, especially not while wearing that 80s cap. Chad, who took the picture, is a model, working in Seoul, and is responsible for capturing fashion trends in Korea on film for his blog.

Well, I also did some capturing. Here are two vendors at the flea market that posed for photos:

Apparently the white teddy bear above is a panda bear, like the one on her jersey. I'm assuming it is an albino panda. Cuddly, nevertheless. And below is me camoflaged as a scarecrow: