HONG KONG.- The Korean Cultural Center in Hong Kong celebrated its inauguration at PMQ today, which also marks the establishment of the 32nd KCC worldwide. With the objectives to promote Korean culture across the globe, KCC provides a variety of special programmes for local residents to experience Korean culture first hand. To celebrate its grand opening, KCC is honored to invite Mr. Kim Chandong, renowned Korean art critic and curator, to curate an opening exhibition: “Blooming at the Junction” to present Korean modern art to public.

Mr. Yu Byungchae, Director of Korean Cultural Center in Hong Kong, has expressed his remarks on the grand opening of KCC, “The Korean Cultural Center in Hong Kong will play an invaluable role in introducing Korean culture and arts to Hong Kong and serve as a platform for cultural exchanges between Korea and Hong Kong – and indeed other parts of the Asian region.”

The Korean Cultural Centers over the globe play a role as outposts to promote Korean culture across the globe. They provide a variety of special programmes for local residents to experience Korean culture first hand, will be the hub to spread the Korean wave to Hong Kong and the rest of the world. The two-story Korean Cultural Center offers facilities including: Korean Language Lecture Room that grant Korean Language and Culture courses to raise the interest of Korean learning; Korean Food Experience Zone to promote Korean culinary cultures which emphasis nature and original taste of ingredient; K-Food Classroom that allows 16 people to learn Korean cuisine at one time; Tradition Zone to showcase Korean traditional lifestyle and culture; K-op Experience Zone that has a rich digital contents of K-pop culture, and songs in different eras and showcases history of K-pop, visitors could listen to the latest K-Pop songs provided by MOOV, which platform provides lyrics for learning; Library and Gallery that store Korean books about culture , arts and literature, and host literary events like “Meeting the Author” ; Multimedia Room where visitors can enjoy film, documentary and drama as well as Korean entertainment culture; Multi-function Hall where exhibition, performance, small-scale concert, movie screening and talks take place; and the Functional Meeting Room, a shared space opens to public for project and meeting related to Korea. KCC encourages the cultural exchange between Hong Kong and Korea from now on. In the Opening Ceremony, ten K-Supports who have contribute continuous efforts in promotion Korean culture in Hong Kong are announced.

“Blooming at the Junction” Opening Exhibition
The Korean Cultural Center (KCC) in Hong Kong invited Mr. Kim Chandong, renowned Korean art critic and curator, to curate an opening exhibition: “Blooming at the Junction” between 25 Jan to 31 Mar, an inclusive introduction to the traditional expression of colors uniquely portrayed by 19 renowned Korean Contemporary artists including Quac Insik, Koo Bohnchang, Kim Kulim, Kim Sooja, Kim Atta, Kim Hodeuk, Kim Hongjoo, Na Hyun, Park Saengkwang, Park Hyunki, Bae Bienu, Nam June Paik, Suh Yongsun, Shin Meekyoung, Yun Hyongkeun, Lee Seahyun, Lee Seungtaek, Jung Bocsu, and Hwang Inkie. The experience comes in all diverse forms including paintings, media art and photographs. The art pieces range from those created since the 1970s, when the process of finding the identity of Korean art began, to those created recently.

“Blooming at the Junction” exhibition presents the diverse side of Korean modern art to visitors. The aim is to show how Korean ideology operates in modern art and what kind of consideration artists have in mind. In general, Korean modern art adopts an analytical attitude towards the aesthetic and cultural values prescribed by Western art and casts doubts on their unquestionability. The reason is that the world, just like the yin and the yang, never stops changing in time and space. It was not an easy task to digest, in the context of Korean identity, the Western art introduced from Japan during the Japanese colonial era. One-way learning of Western art was inevitable at the beginning, but the assimilation of it with Korean sentiment and value within the history, cultural and realistic conditions of Korea began after the 1970s. Although the Western logic and forms are still borrowed nowadays within the ever-changing trend of international art, the underlying spirit of Korean modern art is based on Korean ideology consisting of elements such as Shamanism, Zen thinking, yin-yang and the Confucian view of the world. This spirit is re-interpreted with modern languages such as nomadic thinking, separation and consilience.