Seoul meeting to guide culture, arts education

The World Conference on Arts Education will open May 25 in Seoul with scholars and sociologists from some 190 countries gathering to find ways to promote arts education and cultural diversity, organizers said Friday.

The four-day conference arranged by Unesco is a follow-up to a session four years ago in Lisbon, the organizers said.

The Seoul event will focus on guiding policy for arts education, especially in developing countries, and broadening the sociocultural dimension of arts education to promote diversity, they said in a press briefing.

“In the 21st century, creative workers make their country stronger and richer. The creative workers are educated in arts and culture,” said Lee Dae-young, commissioner of the organizing committee.

“The meeting will demonstrate that arts education is the future of a nation.”

Irian Bokova, director general of Unesco, will give opening remarks. Robert and Michele Root-Bernstein, co-authors of the bestselling book “The Spark of Genius: The 13 Thinking Tools of the World’s Most Creative People,” are scheduled to deliver the keynote speech.

The conference will consist of 25 workshops and group discussions on arts education in and out of school, cooperation between teachers and artists, and education and training for teachers and artists.

The program also includes a roundtable conference with cultural ministers and ambassadors from 20 countries.

On the last day, participants will adopt the “Seoul Agenda,” which will set up detailed guidelines on arts and culture education.

Yonhap