Culture Ministry to operate largest ever Korea House for Olympics

Food & Travel

Published: 19 Jul. 2024, 16:30 Updated: 19 Jul. 2024, 18:47

Culture Ministry to operate largest ever Korea House for Olympics

Korea House at Maison de la Chimie (House of Chemistry) at the 7th arrondissement in Paris [KOREAN SPORT AND OLYMPIC COMMITTEE]

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will be operating its largest ever makeshift cultural center Korea House during the upcoming Olympic Games Paris 2024, it said through a press release Friday.

Co-hosted with the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee, Korea House will operate from July 25 to Aug. 11 at Maison de la Chimie (House of Chemistry) at the 7th arrondissement in Paris.

The Korea House has been set up for every Olympic Game since the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens in a bid to support Korean athletes and facilitate sports diplomacy. More recently, it has also been hosting a slew of cultural events promoting Korea.

This year, 15 public and private organizations will partake in the Korea House to showcase a wide array of the country's cultural charms, including dance, art, music, food and fashion, according to the ministry.

The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) will be hosting K-pop and break dance shows, open K-pop lessons and K-beauty booths where participants can get their makeup done with Korean products and receive beauty consultations.

The Korea Culture and Arts Education Service will host a joint dance show "A la Main" with youths from Korea and France. The performance is helmed by the French nonprofit dance company DaPoPa and Korea's Ahn Eun-me Company.

The Korea Craft and Design Foundation is set to hold a hanbok (traditional clothing) fashion show, and the Korean National Ballet will stage a performance with gugak (traditional music).

The Korea Publication Industry Promotion Agency will be promoting Korean literature through a live painting show by picture book artist Lee Ki-hoon as well as panel talks with authors Baik Sou-linne, Yun Ko-eun and Bernard Minier.

The Korea House will hold permanent exhibitions as well.

The KTO collaborated with BTS's agency HYBE to introduce cultural events and tourist hot spots around Korea. It will also display K-pop stage outfits and offer opportunities for visitors try on traditional and modern hanbok and take pictures against backdrops of Korea's representative tourist spots.

The Culture Ministry will hold an exhibition on hanbok, hanji (Korean paper) and hansik (traditional food).

The Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange and Korea Ceramic Foundation will jointly host a Korean craft exhibition.

The Korea Creative Content Agency will helm a media art exhibit.

Korean conglomerate CJ Group, instant photography booth operator Photoism, beer company Cass and pastry chain Paris Baguette will also take part at this year's Korea House to showcase Korean films, music, food and their products.

All the events at the Korea House are free of charge. Reservations are required through its official website.

"This is the first time this many related institutions are set to take part in Korea House in this big a scale," a ministry official said in a release. "Moving forward, Korea House will of course support athletes and sports diplomacy but will also provide a variety of cultural contents to promote Korean culture to everyone gathered for the Olympics."

BY LEE JIAN [lee.jian@joongang.co.kr]