Culture Day adds painted pianos, doubles in size

The number of so-called Culture Day programs topped 1,800 this month, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced yesterday.

The figure is about double the number of programs from January of last year, when the government first launched the day in an attempt to enrich Koreans’ lives through the arts - something that the Park Geun-hye administration is highly invested in.

Culture Day falls on the final Wednesday of every month, during which admissions to cultural programs like concerts, movies, performances, art exhibitions and sporting events are either free or discounted.

The most interesting program this month appears to be “Run Piano,” in which about a dozen pianos - donated by individuals and companies and painted by various artists - will be installed in Gangnam Station in southern Seoul and Geumcheon-gu Office in western Seoul.

Although Culture Day is supposed to be a one-day event, the “Run Piano” program takes places for five days starting tomorrow. The pianos are works of art on their own, but there will also be concerts in which professional musicians play the pianos. When there aren’t any concerts, passersby can also play them.

“The ‘Run Piano’ program is an exhibition, a concert, a street festival and a donation,” Lee Su-myeong, an official at the Culture Ministry’s policy department, said.

“At the end of the year, the pianos will be donated to schools and welfare centers.”

Also this month, the Korea Forest Service is taking part in Culture Day for the first time.

Admission to the 38 national forests, which are under the Korea Forest Service’s supervision, will be free of charge starting this month.

Some 330 libraries have also extended their hours to open at night during Culture Day.

“As Culture Day is gaining more recognition, more and more institutions and regional governments are taking part,” said Lee Hyeong-ho, the head of the ministry’s policy department.

BY KIM HYUNG-EUN [hkim@joongang.co.kr]