EVEN THE most ambitious of us enjoy leisure time separately from our academic pursuits. Some enjoy physical activities that get our blood pumping, while others enjoy activities that stimulate our brain. Our hobbies can be both a reprieve from the race of life and an opportunity to discover a new passion and hone novel skills.

Drawing on a unique canvas

   Not all artists rely on a traditional easel or paper canvas. In the case of Sunny*, an Instagram story challenge to draw an avocado prompted her to start drawing on her iPad. “Drawing on an iPad definitely feels different but Procreate** has so many drawing tools, which helps me focus on bringing the image in my head to life. It’s also changed my drawing style; on paper, I tend to draw more in black and white, but my digital art is more colorful and energetic. Hence, I went from drawing portraits to illustrations of animated characters that I really like. I’m currently drawing Groot from The Guardians of the Galaxy, but I’m always searching for ideas.”

   Her search for inspiration has drawn her to various cafés around Seoul, the most memorable being Café Jool in Hongdae where she decorated a porcelain mug with watercolor paint. As a tribute to her birthday month, she decided to make a Halloween-themed cup. She admitted to having struggled to draw properly on such an unusual canvas, but she was quickly pulled in. “There’s something unique about drawing and painting on a cup,” she explained. “I felt like a real artist, sipping coffee from a mug while I was making my own. I hadn’t used watercolors in a while and since it’s a cup, I didn’t have to worry about keeping proportions. I think it’s a great creative outlet—the person next to me actually drew a brain cell from Yumi’s Cells***, which I found very cute.”

   For Sunny, drawing is more than a simple hobby. “Not only has it made me more observant, but it inspires me to think more deeply about nature and the world. I don’t know if I would pursue drawing as a career, but it helps me express my thoughts. It’s a natural process: whenever inspiration strikes, I would draw a rough sketch of what I have bouncing around in my mind and repeat this over and over again until I’ve got the results that I imagined. What looks like simple animated art is actually the combination of millions of strokes until it’s flawless in our eyes.”

Model-making enthusiast

   Some hobbies don’t develop from innate skills, but are rather discovered through a chance encounter. Sunny revealed that she picked up an interest in making scale models from her roommate: “One day, she brought a miniature Pikachu Lego set home and we assembled it together. It has become a fun tradition—every month after we get our salary, we buy a miniature model kit and build it together.” Sunny confessed. “We actually have quite a sizable collection, ranging from a metal airplane to a Lego piano set.”

   “You need a really keen eye and steady hands to make miniature models that don’t fall apart as soon as you set them down, which is where my drawing skills have come in handy. It’s a great way to practice patience as well, because you can’t rush or take a shortcut. It’s the only time when I actually understand the word ‘laser-focus’.”

The art and science of baking

   “Is baking an art or a science?” Sarah may not be a professional pastry chef, but she is enthusiastic about her projects. She may have started out with a Pepero****-making kit from Seven Eleven, but has since then progressed to baking cookies and brownies. “It’s both an art and a science because you can put your own spin on it, but you still need to follow a set of instructions.”

   “I’d like to think that it’s made me more patient, but it’s actually helped me develop a methodical approach that applies to other things—everything has a logical sequence and we just need to follow it. Once the pastry is out of the oven, then comes the creative part: getting to decorate it however I want."

   What makes baking meaningful for her, however, is giving her baked goods to her family and friends. “It’s really easy to go out and buy a gift for someone, but I like giving gifts that I spent more than just money on. Baking is such a hands-on activity, and it really shows how much you know that person and their preferences.”

Knitting from the bottom of my heart

   “I’ve recently gotten into knitting,” replied Krysti when she was asked about a unique hobby of hers. For many people, knitting may not seem like an activity that requires a lot of skill, but she defends its merits. “As they say, practice makes perfect—you need to keep practicing all the different types of stitches you can make to learn how to knit them properly. It’s a repetitive activity, but that’s why it’s so soothing. Knitting has improved my multi-tasking abilities, that’s for sure.”

   Krysti usually knits scarves and hats for her friends and family, but recently started a new project. “During the summer, I saw that my neighbors had made little houses for the stray cats, so I decided to knit a small padded blanket to cover the ground and give the cats a little comfort. I get to practice a lot because I have to replace the blankets every two weeks or so—cats are cats.”

From duty to passion

   “Stereotypical or not, I learned the piano when I was very young,” said June. “I hated the lessons, but once I learned to play and read the music sheet on my own, I began to appreciate them. My dad got me an electric piano when I was in high school, and I subconsciously started to link instrumental music with the warm feeling I got when I first played my favorite pop song, “Day 1” by Honne. After that, I started to learn how to play my favorite pop songs on the piano, and whenever I feel stressed, I play some songs and unwind.”

   The hobby that has changed her routine, however, is photography. “Up till last year, I was used to taking photos with my phone camera and adding a filter on it to upload on Instagram. However, when I started taking pictures for my student club, I became aware of the limits of my phone camera and learned how to use a digital camera. I watched dozens of YouTube tutorials and went on a lot of short trips to improve my photography skills. I’m still in the process of mastering them, but I’ve come to enjoy the spontaneity of taking a photograph. I now judge everything I see to figure out if it will make a good photo or not.”

   “What you picture in your head isn’t always what you capture on camera, but that’s the best part of it for me. We all see the world in different ways, so it’s really interesting to see how an objective photograph can be interpreted in so many different ways. What I think is a serene photo can seem totally different to my friend.”

   June commented on how all the hobbies that she is now passionate about started as an obligation, including bicycle riding. “My mom bought me a bike when we came back to Korea both because I should exercise and I was too overwhelmed by the Korean public transportation system. I biked to work simply because walking would take too long, but I grew to love it. It clears my head and helps me avoid the crowded subways during the pandemic. Looking back, I remember how annoyed I was at having to bike somewhere after getting used to driving, but it’s now such an integral part of my life that I don’t even think about it when I’m taking my bike out for work.”

Focused and precise

   Taking advantage of the unique café culture in Korea, Robert found an archery café and promptly signed up as a member. “Pursuing archery as a sport is costly, because most archery ranges require you to have your own bow. I was lucky enough to find a café where I could practice archery at a relatively lower cost. I’ve always thought it looked cool in television shows and movies, so I was motivated to try and hit the bullseye. I’ve practiced so much that most, if not all, of my arrows land near the center, with the occasional bullseye.”

   Archery is a sport that requires focus, good eyesight and steady, precise hands. “It’s not as physically demanding as other sports, but it helps me focus. I was surprised at how much strength it takes to hold the bow constantly and consistently—the first few times, my arms were killing me after firing 36 arrows. Now, I can go twice that without breaking a sweat. The thrill of shooting a bullseye is like winning a football match, only there’s no teamwork involved.”

   “When I feel antsy from having studied for so long, I go to the café and play a session. Afterward, I’m able to concentrate better on my studies.”

   Similarly, Sebastian takes advantage of the various inexpensive pool halls in Korea. “My dad taught me how to play pool; it’s become a weekly routine that I rely on. It’s also fun to play with friends, and a great way to break the ice when you meet new people. I think it’s all about math and how good your aim is; whether I’m lining up a shot or watching my partner play, I try to guess if their angle and force is going to get the ball in the direction that they want—real-world application of trigonometry right there. Before you know it, a few hours have gone by.”

   However, his mother disapproved of this. “She thought I should do something more productive, especially when I was starting college. I decided to find a hobby she would approve of, and I discovered both a talent and a passion for coding. I’ve always been an avid gamer, and it fascinates me how thousands of lines of code work together to create video games that are so popular today. It’s not like it’s shown in the movies, but there’s something so satisfying about writing a line of code and seeing the next dozen lines drop down.”

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   Whether it’s for entertainment, stress relief or a pursuit of something we are passionate about, hobbies are an important part of our lives. In a world where we are constantly competing to be the best, our hobbies may not be one-of-a-kind, but they are what make us human and passionate.

*All names in this article have been changed.

**A drawing application optimized for iPads

***A Korean webtoon

****South Korean snacks sold by Lotte Confectionery