Culture Communication Forum brings together cultural leaders to talk concept of space

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Culture Communication Forum brings together cultural leaders to talk concept of space

Panelists at the Culture Communication Forum 2022, hosted by the Corea Image Communication Institute, pose on Thursday at the Grand Hyatt Seoul in central Seoul. French-American intellectual Guy Sorman tuned into the event by video call. [CICI]

Panelists at the Culture Communication Forum 2022, hosted by the Corea Image Communication Institute, pose on Thursday at the Grand Hyatt Seoul in central Seoul. French-American intellectual Guy Sorman tuned into the event by video call. [CICI]

 
The Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI) hosted its annual Culture Communication Forum (CCF) on Thursday at the Grand Hyatt Seoul hotel in central Seoul.  
 
The forum sees cultural leaders from all over the world take part in a panel discussion covering various topics. This year, the discussion centered on what the concept of space means in the Covid-19 era, as well as how the Blue House (the previous home of the presidential office) should be utilized and the metaverse.
 
A non-profit organization dedicated to public diplomacy and promoting Korean culture, the CICI has been hosting the CCF since 2010. This year’s edition involved renowned figures in the cultural scene from all over the world including French-American intellectual Guy Sorman and French architect Jean Louis Cohen, who participated via video call.
 
Choi Jung-hwa, the president of the CICI, opened the discussion panel as the moderator by stressing the role of space, as “we see more people working from home due to digital transformation and the pandemic.”
 
“Winston Churchill once said, ‘we shape our buildings; therefore, they shape us,’” Choi said. “We could not agree with this more. Space has a significant impact on how we behave as it is where we have cultural communication.”
 
Sorman said that “the transformation of Seoul is not only about architecture, it is about the connection with history and the symbolic value of these buildings.”
 
He elaborated that Cheonggye Stream and the Seoul Metropolitan Government office building, both in central Seoul, were both good examples.
 
“The [Cheonggye Stream] is the starting point of the transformation of the city,” Sorman said. “It reconnects Seoul with its past. This was the result of in-depth thinking about what signifies the capital of [Korea] and there is reconnecting with the past from centuries to centuries [...] It’s a masterpiece.
 
“The Metropolitan building is completely transparent and is an open space. It’s a symbol of the democratization of [Korea] — the building wasn’t built for the bureaucrats; it was built for the people.”
 
Lee Young-hye, CEO of local design lifestyle company Designhouse, agreed, emphasizing that there should be more spaces that are “free for the public to use anytime.”
 
“It’s important that Cheonggye Stream has also become an area where people can frequently go and enjoy themselves,” Lee said. “The thing about happiness is that it comes and goes. Cities, because they are so densely packed, should be filled with places that allow people to feel a loose sense of solidarity.”
 
Lee Jung-soo, also known as Simon Lee, CEO of the language data platform Flitto, extended the meaning of space to the metaverse, which has become a platform for education, get-togethers and even travel.
 
“However, since the metaverse relies largely on artificial intelligence and is accessible from any place in the world, translation is crucial for speech-to-text technology,” Lee said, “which is why it’s plausible to say that a new language form may emerge: One that is meant to be convenient for the metaverse.”
 
As for how the Blue House should be transformed for public use, Yoo Hyun-joon, an architecture professor at Hongik University, suggested creating a shared office space for the public.
 
“But there should be a win-win if there is to be a collaboration [between a commercial company and the Cultural Heritage Administration]. It should not be one-sided,” said David Pierre Jalicon, chairman of the Korea-France Chamber of Commerce and Industry and CEO of DPJ & Partners, Architecture (an architectural design firm).
 
Other speakers who took part in this year’s CCF were Katrina Sedgwick, CEO of Melbourne Arts Precinct Corporation, Philip Turner, New Zealand Ambassador to Korea and Park Jin-woo, CEO of Tmonet, a company that specializes in mobile payment services.

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [shin.minhee@joongang.co.kr]
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