Waste Transformed into Art... "Yeongdeok Upcycling Art Festa" to Feature Fun Box Race

A Rich Array of Exhibitions, Hands-On Activities, and Entertainment at the 2025 Yeongdeok Upcycling Art Festa
Recruiting Participants for the Yeongdeok Fun Box Race and Smiling Poster Contest

The Yeongdeok Culture and Tourism Foundation in North Gyeongsang Province will host the eco-friendly festival "2025 Yeongdeok Upcycling Art Festa," utilizing waste resources, on November 8 and 9 in the Deokgokcheon area of Yeongdeok-eup.

The origins of the "Yeongdeok Upcycling Art Festa" date back to 2021, when local residents dressed 200 roadside trees along Deokgokcheon in hand-knitted covers.

Over the past four years, the festival has grown into an integrated eco-friendly event, featuring exhibitions of upcycling works and hands-on experiences as well as street performances. Approximately 100 organizations, groups, schools, villages, and clubs from Yeongdeok County are directly participating.

This year, the "Yeongdeok Upcycling Art Festa" will feature its main programs: the Yeongdeok Fun Box Race, Upcycling Public, Upcycling Choice, Upcycling Performance, and Upcycling Playground.

First, "Upcycling Art Public" is an exhibition of about 50 works in 10 categories, created directly by local residents from organizations, groups, villages, and schools, which will be displayed throughout the Deokgokcheon area. In addition, the "Upcycling Choice" exhibition, featuring professional upcycling artists, delivers messages of "Nature," "Recovery," and "Hope" to comfort the land and people of Yeongdeok, who were hurt by a large wildfire earlier this year. These works can be viewed on the second floor of Cheongpumgo in Yeongdeok-eup.

During the festival, "Upcycling Art Performance" will present a variety of environmental art, including circus acts, upcycled instrument performances, and street shows. Notably, this year’s program features Creative Art's "Upcycling Cello," which was showcased at the Edinburgh Festival in the United Kingdom, as well as a performance in which Antarctic penguins roam the venue picking up litter.

At the "Upcycling Art Playground," visitors can participate in activities such as repainting wooden animal artworks created in 2024 and enjoy various rides and play experiences under the theme of a wooden playground.

The main program of this year’s festival, the "Yeongdeok Fun Box Race," will be held in two categories: "Downhill (Car)" and "Air (Airplane)." Unlike previous years, where participants rode in self-made cars, this year, cars made from waste materials will be rolled down a hill without passengers, and airplanes will be thrown instead of piloted.

Applications for participation are open until October 27. Interested parties can download the application form from the Yeongdeok Culture and Tourism Foundation website, fill it out, and submit it via email.

As a pre-festival promotional event, the "Smiling Poster Contest" will also be held. In this contest, local residents can freely doodle and decorate posters, submit them, and the entries will be displayed during the festival, with awards given based on a popularity vote.

Last year, a total of 245 posters were submitted for the "Smiling Poster Contest," and the works can be viewed on the Upcycling Art Festa website.

Last year's scene of the Yeongdeok Fun Box Race.

Posters to be decorated are being distributed one per person at Yeju Culture and Arts Center, Cheongpumgo in Yeongdeok-eup, and Yeongdeok Life Culture Center from October 20. Completed posters must be submitted to the distribution locations by October 31. Registration via QR code is required before submission. The "Smiling Poster Contest" is open to everyone, and schools, organizations, or groups can coordinate their submission schedules if needed.

A representative from the Yeongdeok Culture and Tourism Foundation stated, "The Upcycling Art Festa, which has grown into a unique environmental festival for Yeongdeok, will be held this year in conjunction with Yeongdeok Life Culture Week's 'Udada Exchange Meeting.' This has made it a festival that truly integrates local life and culture. In particular, although the scale of the 'Yeongdeok Fun Box Race' has been reduced compared to previous years, we have added more categories to lower the barrier to participation. We hope for much interest and participation."

For more information about the "2025 Yeongdeok Upcycling Art Festa," please visit the Yeongdeok Culture and Tourism Foundation website or contact the Culture and Tourism Team.

2025 Yeongdeok Upcycling Art Festa Poster.