Day and night, the streets of Korea are generally fairly busy. Especially, in the streets of the Gangnam district in southern Seoul, which are filled with shops, cafés and restaurants. Along the sidewalk of the road, there are twenty one vertical metal poles that are 12 meters tall with video screens all the way to the top displaying abstract shapes and color in motion.

As we were walking the streets of Gangnam, we noticed people posing in front of the stands and writing on the screens. We decided to see what the fuss was about and it turns out there is a camera on top of the screen and pedestrians can pose and take a photo. Then, they can write a message using their fingers as a writing utensil and email the personalized photo postcard to whomever you wish.

The interactive touch-screens were easy to use and simple to understand. There were also customization options, which allowed users to choose the color of their message and the different photo border templates. Another great element of this installation was that users could retake their photo many times to ensure an excellent shot before they email it.

On top of that, what’s fascinating about this street installation was that there was no identity attached–no branding or logos on the physical structure, no commercials or banner ads during the use of the program and no logo was attached to the digital postcard. So out of curiosity, I searched for more information and found that the project is funded by city of Seoul and sending a digital postcard was only one small function of these media poles.You could also search maps, read news, play games and check transportation information. Unquestionably, this project displays a new form of digital technology that we have yet to explore in North America.

Karen Ha