Expressing Ambitions as a Leading Performance and Exhibition Venue in Seoul's Southern Region... Establishing a New Role as a Book-Centered Hub at Gwanak-gu Central Library
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Since its opening in 2002, the Gwanak Cultural Center and Library, which has been loved as a cultural hub and cradle of knowledge and information representing Gwanak-gu residents, will be renamed as ‘Gwanak Art Hall·Gwanak Central Library.’
The Gwanak Cultural Foundation (CEO Cha Min-tae) announced that on March 16, the ordinance for the name change passed the plenary session of the Gwanak District Council, and the ordinance was officially implemented on April 2, leading to this name change.
Through this name change, they plan to further strengthen the image as a professional performance and exhibition facility representing the southern region of Seoul and as a central library of Gwanak-gu.
The Gwanak Cultural Center and Library, operated under consignment by the foundation, was a facility name encompassing various facilities such as a performance hall with about 700 seats and a library. However, the cultural center, functioning as a performance hall, had many simple event rentals and a strong image as a lifelong learning facility, which limited the planning or attraction of high-quality performance and exhibition programs.
Also, although the library is a central library connecting 11 public libraries in Gwanak-gu and 23 Saemaeul Geumgo libraries in autonomous centers, there were criticisms that its functions were not properly utilized.
Accordingly, the cultural center will be renamed ‘Gwanak Art Hall’ and will firmly establish its position as a family theater and diverse exhibition facility representing the southern region of Seoul.
In particular, it aims to actively attract and discover high-quality domestic and international performances and exhibitions to further enhance the quality of residents’ cultural life.
Additionally, the ‘Gwanak Central Library’ will not only serve as a knowledge and cultural network hub connecting various libraries in Gwanak-gu but will also specialize in non-face-to-face reading culture services such as the Neighborhood Bookstore Direct Loan System, Interlibrary Loan Service, and Subway U Library, as well as humanities programs featuring Gwanak-gu’s pride, General Gang Gam-chan, actively participating in creating a ‘Together Excellent Gwanak.’
The Gwanak Cultural Foundation, launched for the first time in August last year as a pledge project of the 7th local government, plans to actively participate in responding to COVID-19 and introduce healing programs through culture and arts and commercial district revitalization projects to overcome difficulties caused by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic early after the end of social distancing.
Park Jun-hee, Mayor of Gwanak-gu, expressed expectations, saying, “With the new spring of 2020, the Gwanak Cultural Center and Library have been reborn with new names, Gwanak Art Hall and Gwanak Central Library,” and added, “I hope it will be reborn as a complex cultural space that leads brilliant culture where 500,000 Gwanak residents laugh together and create healthy intellect together, breaking away from the existing stagnant image.”
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