Namwon City’s ‘Namwon City Kim Byung-jong Art Museum’ Selected as One of Korea’s Top 100 Tourist Attractions

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Nosik] Namwon City in Jeonbuk announced on the 28th that the Namwon City Kim Byung-jong Art Museum was selected for the 2021-2022 "Korea Tourism 100," hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization.

"Korea Tourism 100" is a project that selects 100 representative tourist destinations that both Koreans and foreign visitors must visit every two years and promotes them domestically and internationally. Six locations in Jeonbuk Province were selected.

The Korea Tourism 100 was selected through a rigorous evaluation process including a first round of document review, a second round of on-site inspection, and a third final selection committee meeting. The candidates were 198 sites consisting of ▲ the "Korea Tourism 100" selected in 2019-20 ▲ tourist sites recommended by local governments ▲ and the most visited tourist sites. Experts from related fields such as tourism academia, travel industry, travel journalists, and writers participated in the evaluation, utilizing big data from mobile carriers, navigation services (Gil-dowoo), and social networking services (SNS).

The Namwon City Kim Byung-jong Art Museum, selected this time, opened in March 2018 and has continuously attracted not only art enthusiasts but also general visitors, with a steady flow of visitors.

In particular, the museum was established when artist Kim Byung-jong, an honorary professor at Seoul National University from Namwon, donated about 400 works and over 5,000 materials to Namwon City. He wanted to create a space for hometown juniors in Namwon to enjoy, reflecting his lifelong yearning for cultural and artistic benefits while growing up in the countryside during his childhood.

Namwon Mayor Lee Hwan-joo said, “I consider it very meaningful that the Namwon City Kim Byung-jong Art Museum was selected for 2021-2022. In the post-COVID-19 era, I recommend the museum as a place where our generation can enjoy slow walks and contemplation with Kim Byung-jong’s works themed on ‘life’ and ‘nature,’ experience the aesthetics of slowness with leisure, and find true healing and relaxation. It is a place that makes you want to visit even more.”