Korea Herald launches 3rd Herald Traditional Art Competition, appoints steering committee

The Korea Herald officially launched the 3rd Herald Traditional Art Competition (K-ART Competition) on Tuesday, holding an appointment ceremony for its steering committee.

The ceremony took place Tuesday afternoon at Herald Square in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, and was attended by Choi Jin-young, CEO of co-organizer Herald Media Group, and Yang Jeong-seok, CEO of Art & Bridge, along with leading figures from Korea's traditional art community.

Eleven authorities across their respective fields were appointed to the steering committee: Eom Jae-kwon, director of the Minhwa Research Institute; Song Chang-su, former professor at Dongduk Women's University Graduate School and former president of the Korea Minhwa Association; Yun In-su, director of the Minhwa Royal Court Painting Research Institute and former chair of the traditional crafts division of the Korea Fine Arts Association; Geum Gwang-bok, standing adviser of the Korea Minhwa Association and a designated minhwa cultural heritage transmitter; Lee Young-chul, former president of Dongbang University; Kim Young-sam, chair of the literati painting division of the Korea Fine Arts Association; Park Jeong-suk, former president of the Galmul Hangul Calligraphy Society; Jang Ji-hun, professor in the calligraphy department of the College of Fine Arts at Kyonggi University; Kim Seong-tae, president of the Calligraphy Design Association and team leader at KBS Art Vision; Oh Jeong-min, director of Gallery Pureunhaneul; and Seok Tae-jin, CEO of Geulssi 21 and director of Gallery Ilbaekheon.

In their remarks, Choi and Yang said they expected the committee members — who have preserved and advanced the roots of traditional art despite difficult circumstances — to serve as a guiding light for the competition. "Let us join forces to make this competition a launchpad for showcasing the essence of K-ART on the world stage, beyond Korea's borders," they said.

The competition is open to entries in calligraphy, lettering arts, literati painting, minhwa, embroidery and pojagi.

Initial submissions of photo files will be accepted Nov. 10–12 through the Art & Bridge website. Works selected as finalists and award winners will be exhibited at Dongduk Art Gallery and Contemporary Namu Art Gallery in February next year.

The grand prize winner will receive the Korea Herald President's Award and a cash prize of 5 million won ($3,640). The three excellence award winners will each receive a local government head's award and an invitation to a solo exhibition valued at 2.5 million won per person.

The Herald Traditional Art Competition is a national-scale art competition established to promote the excellence of Korean traditional art, discover new K-ART content that reinterprets tradition through a contemporary lens, and expand the potential for Korean traditional art to reach a global audience.