Activation of 5,239 Cultural Spaces in 24 Cultural Cities and Cultural Enjoyment by 4.23 Million People

On the 24th, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced that last year, 24 cultural cities nationwide activated 5,239 cultural spaces, and a total of 4.23 million local residents and visitors enjoyed culture. This figure significantly increased compared to 3,658 places and 2.53 million people in 2023.

The Cultural City project is a key initiative promoted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to realize the national agenda of 'region-centered balanced cultural development.' The first seven cultural cities were designated in December 2019, and up to the fourth round in 2022, a total of 24 cities have been designated. A cultural city refers to a city designated by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism under the 'Regional Culture Promotion Act' to effectively utilize the region's unique cultural resources and strengthen cultural creativity.

As a result of performance evaluations conducted on the first to fourth rounds of cultural cities, the Ministry explained that the 24 cultural cities nationwide activated 5,239 cultural spaces, and a total of 4.23 million local residents and visitors enjoyed culture. Last year, the Ministry supported each of the 24 cultural cities with 1.5 billion KRW in national funds to back ▲improvements in regional cultural conditions ▲discovery and support of cultural content based on unique local culture ▲training of creative cultural personnel.

A scene from the water fireworks play "Universe on the Lake," hosted by the Chungbuk Chungju Cultural Tourism Foundation's Cultural City Center and Yesulbulkkot Gallery on September 28 last year. The performance was held over four days at the Tangeum Lake Rowing Stadium, attracting about 4,000 paid spectators.
Photo by Yonhap News

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism evaluated these achievements and selected Miryang City in Gyeongsangnam-do as the 'Cultural City of the Year.'

Since being designated as the 3rd round cultural city in 2021, Miryang City has pursued various cultural projects under the vision of 'Recovery of Life, New Future, Sunshine Cultural City Miryang.' Notably, the site of Miryang University, which had been abandoned for about 18 years after its closure, was reborn as the 'Sunshine Culture Campus,' establishing itself as a cultural hub in the region.

In addition, Miryang revitalized local culture through various projects such as ▲hosting the 'Miryang University Festa' ▲urban vacant space cultural regeneration ▲operation of an artists' art market ▲building the Sunshine Culture brand ▲forming the Sunshine Culture community ▲operating a citizen living lab. Approximately 30,000 citizens visited the 4th Miryang University Festa (October 25?27, 2024), held to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Miryang University’s founding, and the 'Yeoldudol Complex Cultural Space' within the Sunshine Culture Campus, which opened in November last year, attracted 140,000 visitors over two months. Through these projects, Miryang generated an economic effect of 9.7 billion KRW and widely promoted the regional image themed on 'Sunshine.' The city also developed unique content such as 'Independence Army Arirang' and 'Yeongdeung Grandma Arirang,' solidifying its city image represented by 'Arirang.'

In December last year, the Ministry designated 13 additional 'Korea Cultural Cities' as a 'metropolitan leading model.' This year, the Ministry will continue to support cultural cities while actively promoting the creation of 'Korea Cultural Cities.' The 'Korea Cultural Cities' project, which comprehensively improves cultural conditions beyond the region to neighboring areas, is expected to invest 20 billion KRW per region annually for three years starting this year. As a metropolitan-linked project, the Ministry plans to create conditions for active exchanges with other regions, including existing cultural cities.

Minister Yoo In-chon stated, "The 'Cultural City' project, which expands cultural enjoyment opportunities for local residents and leads regional development through culture, is a key initiative of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism," adding, "We will take full responsibility and provide continuous support so that each region selected as a 'Cultural City' can leverage its unique characteristics to become a place where people want to visit, stay, and live."