It started in 2008 with a single projector picked up at a European flea market. The peculiar charm of a century-old machine quickly grew into a serious pursuit.
Over the years that followed, artifacts were sourced through auctions and specialized dealers across Germany, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States. She traveled to France to meet dealers in person, acquiring rare pieces such as the Praxinoscope and an Eclair 35mm camera. Nearly two decades later, the collection numbers over 500 pieces.
She did not merely accumulate. She learned to disassemble and repair projectors, to splice and edit film, and to study the history and mechanics behind each machine. Every acquisition was immediately photographed, classified, and documented with purchase receipts and provenance records.
Writer Nam Woo-jin, in his book Women's Hobbies (PAPER·inFO), described the collection as "an untouched trove never before shown to the outside world" and its owner as "a collector of real substance — combining both theoretical knowledge and hands-on skill."
"I want to create a place where children can turn these machines by hand and learn how cinema began." That has been the collector's longstanding aspiration — a space where visitors can spin a Praxinoscope, project shadow plays with a magic lantern, and thread film through an 8mm projector.
This website is a first step. The moment over 500 artifacts, long kept in a basement storage, see the light for the first time.