With German Embassy's 'techno diplomacy,' community-building finds unique rhythm in Korea
The diplomatic mission aims to bring the unifying power of Berlin's underground electronic scene to Seoul as a means of turning club venues into creative hubs.
Panelists, including Bada, owner of the queer bar Kockiri; Lutz Henke, cultural director of visitBerlin; German artist Norbert Bisky; and Joon Kwak, founder of Permit and resident DJ at Faust, participate in a discussion on "techno diplomacy" at Kockiri in Itaewon, central Seoul, on June 9. The event, hosted by the German Embassy in Seoul, examined how electronic music venues can serve as civic and cultural infrastructure beyond the dance floor.EMBASSY OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY IN SEOUL
Over 150 club operators, DJs and artists packed into a queer bar hidden in plain sight in Itaewon, a nightlife hub in central Seoul, on Tuesday night for what the German Embassy in Seoul was calling "techno diplomacy."
The event is part of an over two-year effort by the embassy to anchor its Seoul cultural programming around electronic music, funding DJ exchange workshops, trips to Berlin for Asian artists and club nights at a diverse range of venues including Faust, an Itaewon club, and the Mapo Oil Tank Culture Park, which is decidedly not a club. The initiative draws on Berlin's techno scene, which received Unesco Intangible Cultural Heritage status in March 2024, examining whether electronic music venues can go beyond parties to serve as exhibition spaces, workshop venues and community hubs.
"We thought to have an event on the topic of club spaces as creative hubs," said David Bieger, first secretary and head of public diplomacy at the German Embassy.
He added that the techno scene in Berlin is not only recognized as an important reason why many young people are interested in Germany but also "provides a safe space for communities" — a quality he said Kockiri shares as a hub for Seoul's queer community.
Panelists, including Bada, second from left, the owner of the queer bar Kockiri, Lutz Henke, third from left, the cultural director of visitBerlin, German artist Norbert Bisky, second from right, and Joon Kwak, founder of Permit and resident DJ at Faust, participate in a discussion on "techno diplomacy" at Kockiri in Itaewon, central Seoul, on June 9.EMBASSY OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY IN SEOUL
Lutz Henke, cultural director of visitBerlin, traced the German capital's subcultural dominance to the aftermath of the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, when abandoned East Berlin buildings became improvised venues. Youth collectives held illegal basement raves — no permits, no fire escapes — that eventually matured into project spaces and internationally recognized clubs.
During previous visits to Seoul, Henke said he had observed entire neighborhoods vacated for redevelopment with none of the temporary creative reuse that would have followed in Berlin, citing areas like Bogwang-dong, a neighborhood southeast of Itaewon that has turned into a ghost town.
"In Berlin, it would have been the prime resource for city marketing because hundreds of international artists would have occupied those buildings, doing raves, doing project spaces," he said, adding that it reflects a lack of understanding of what cities can do with informal, temporary spaces.
Norbert Bisky, Germany's contemporary painter, embodied that intersection: His large-scale work "Wee Vertigo" has been permanently installed in the famed Berlin club Berghain since it was painted in 2017.
Seoul-based DJ Joon Kwak, a Faust resident and founder of the collective Permit, described local zoning laws as a persistent barrier.
"My experience with the government is quite difficult because, first of all, in their age group, they did not grow up with this culture at all," Kwak said. "If you make people dance in a restaurant, you need to close down the restaurant for three months. [There are] weird rules from the ’70s and ’80s [that make it] really difficult even if you have a great idea."
A DJ session takes place following the panel discussion at Kockiri in Itaewon, central Seoul, on June 9.SEO JI-EUN
German Ambassador Georg Schmidt closed the evening on a more personal note.
"I couldn't give a long talk about why we do techno diplomacy and why Germany is more than that," he said. "And I just wanted to say one thing that I really enjoyed: believe me, if you're old, you can also enjoy clubbing."
