Document Review, Expert Consulting, and In-Person Evaluation...
Final 15 Winners Selected and Awarded
Grand Prize: Stationery Set Featuring Petroglyph Motifs
"K-Traditional Craft & Bangucheon Petroglyphs"
Beyond whales and bamboo forests, Ulsan's new goods-armed with striking designs that spark a desire to collect-have been unveiled.
The city of Ulsan has announced the final selection of 15 items from its “Ulsan Souvenir Design Contest and Commercialization Support” competition, which aims to discover souvenirs that symbolize Ulsan and embody its unique identity.
Under the theme “Ulsan with Souvenirs (Goods),” the contest sought to uncover diverse and creative designs that reflect Ulsan’s representative historical, natural, and cultural symbols and values, such as the Bangucheon petroglyphs (depicting whales, boats, bows, and hunting scenes), the Simnidae Bamboo Grove of Taehwagang River, and the Industrial Tower.
The competition ran from September 15 to October 20, during which a total of 176 design entries from various fields were submitted.
Ulsan City initially shortlisted 20 entries through a first-round expert document review based on criteria such as marketability, design completeness, and usability.
For these shortlisted entries, expert consulting was provided to enhance design quality, guide prototype production, and develop marketing strategies including packaging and sales channels.
The final 15 winners were selected by combining the results of an online public preference survey (30%) and a second round of in-person expert judging (70%), which considered factors such as completeness, marketability, and the impact of expert consulting.
As a result, the grand prize was awarded to “K-Traditional Craft & Bangucheon Petroglyphs” (by Kim Minji), a stationery set utilizing the motifs of the Bangucheon petroglyphs.
The Gold Prizes went to “Bangucheon Petroglyphs, Engraved in the Sky” (umbrella), “The Texture of Ulsan, A Layer of Light” (mood lamp), and “Bangucheon Petroglyphs Blanket.” In addition, there were five Silver Prize winners and six Bronze Prize winners, making a total of 15 selected works.
The prize money will be awarded as follows: Grand Prize (1 winner) 4 million won, Gold Prize (3 winners) 3.5 million won each, Silver Prize (5 winners) 3.1 million won each, and Bronze Prize (6 winners) 2.5 million won each. The prize money will be used to support the commercialization and production of the winning works.
The winning entries will be exhibited starting in January next year at the Ulsan Goods Store locations in the Ulsan Museum, the Petroglyph Museum, and the Taehwagang National Garden Information Center.
An official from Ulsan City stated, “This contest focused on discovering souvenirs that are highly practical, easy to purchase, and truly marketable, through expert consulting, prototype production, and in-person evaluation. We will actively promote and support sales channels so that the selected souvenirs can develop into representative tourism products of Ulsan.”
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