Chonnam National University (CNU) opened its cultural complex “Storium” behind the Library Annex to utilize as a multipurpose cultural space last April. It was originally scheduled to open in September of last year, but the opening was delayed by eight months. Since the opening until now, they have hosted various exhibitions and conference programs, such as “The Record of ‘Deulbul’, Into the Space of Invigoration” and the “Student Success Table” for about seven months.

However, the cultural venue is not well known to students, many of whom do not know about the existence of the building yet. In addition, the building had issues regarding its purpose and opening schedule even before its opening. The Chonnam Tribune looked into how the university operates the Storium, the construction cost about 4.5 billion won and took considerable time, and we listened to students’ opinions about the matter.

Inexprienced Operation
The three-story building has a café, a history wall of CNU, a media art wall, a multi-purpose hall, and a lounge on the basement level. The university’s 52 must-read books are displayed on the first floor, and an exhibition hall is housed on the second floor. Students can get some rest, read books, or see an exhibition there. But except for the café, which is an outside space, the only space students can use freely is the lounge. Kim Se-yun (Sophomore, Faculty of Economics) said, “I don’t know why the building was built and how I can use it.”

Moreover, information about the space cannot be found anywhere on the university’s websites and the opening and closing times are not shown anywhere in the building. Jang Eun-hee (Senior, Dept. of Music Education) said, “I go to the Storium because the building is near the Convergence Education Building, but I don’t know when the building opens and closes.” It is not serving its proper function as a place for students to study or rest. 

Unclear Operation Purposes
At the time of opening, the space was expected to function as a venue for sharing culture and artworks, communication and rest, and as a welfare facility for students. Nevertheless, the purpose of the cultural complex is not clear. There are many facilities like a digital screen, a conference hall, and lounges, but it cannot be known whether those facilities are for students’ welfare or cultural events. Also, any clear standards for exhibitions or events also do not exist.

The basement level where the lounge and the large digital screen are located looks empty because only a few desks and chairs are there. Choi Yu-na (Sophomore, Faculty of Business Administration) said, “If the Storium is for the students’ rest and study, there needs to be more desks and chairs. Also, I want there to be some power sockets for using a laptop or a tablet computer.” Regarding these opinions, the Office of Administrative Affairs official said, “The internal composition and the operation of the building have not been completely defined. After observing how visitors use the building, we will determine the operation and composition of the building.”

Difficulties in Student Use
The Storium is a cultural space and welfare facility for students. However, students have difficulty using it. In the first semester this year, the Department of Biology Education inquired about a rental for a specimen exhibition, but it was rejected because there was no standard about renting the exhibition hall and the specimen exhibition was not suitable for the original purpose of the space. They wanted to use the media art wall and the multi-purpose hall on the basement floor, but only the exhibition hall and a terrace on the second floor were allowed to be used.

The cultural venue was selected as an exhibition site because it was more accessible and newly established for exhibition purposes, but the facility rental process was very difficult for students. They had to get help from the academic department and the student council. Kim Min-seo (Junior, Dept. of Biology Education), president of the Department of Biology Education said, “We were able to rent it with the help of the department and the student councils. I hope clear rental standards and a way to communicate will be prepared well then make the renting process easy for students.”

Urgent Improvement Is Required
Many students ask the question, “The exterior of the building is so pretty, but what was it built for?” As seen above, the use and purpose of the building are not clear. The unclear purpose of each facility has confused students and raised questions. In the rental application, there are only two options for the rental location, only the media art wall on the basement level and the exhibition hall on the second. Other places like the multi-purpose hall, on the basement level, and the terrace were not specified on the application form. According to the Office of Administrative Affairs, the multi-purpose hall is for meetings, and the media art wall is only for LED exhibitions. It is difficult to use them for other purposes. But the problem is that students have no way to easily know this kind of information.

The university authorities are trying to promote the Storium so that students know about the existence of the space. They also need to place more facilities for students to study and rest, and hold more exhibitions and events that attract students like showing movies using the large digital screen or holding student work exhibitions. Many students look forward to the improved cultural complex for all university members in the near future.

By Bae Mun-seong, Editor
By Jeong In-hu, Reporter