Busan promotes itself as 'World Design Capital' to Taiwan

The Busan Metropolitan Government and the Busan Design Center will run a "WDC BUSAN 2028 Busan Pavilion" through Nov. 8 at Gallery 02 of the Taiwan Design Museum inside Songshan Cultural and Creative Park in Taipei. The exhibition aims to tie Taiwanese tourists' strong interest in Busan to the promotion of Busan as the 2028 World Design Capital.

According to statistics, 477,000 Taiwanese tourists visited Busan in the first half of this year, up 54 percent from the same period last year. The surge in visitors has even given rise to a new term, "Busan sickness," describing tourists who developed a longing for the city after visiting.

The Taipei pavilion was set up to introduce Busan's urban charm and the vision behind WDC Busan 2028 to Taiwan through content that blends everyday design with the city's culture, tourism and industry.

Under the exhibition concept "Busan Vibe: Wave," inspired by the waves of Busan's coastline, the pavilion expresses the 2028 WDC Busan theme, "Inclusive City, Engaged Design."

The pavilion features Boogi, Busan's signature character who is already familiar to fans in Taiwan. It showcases the city's marine, cultural and tourism brand identity, along with promotional videos on the World Design Capital, past host cities and the process behind Busan's WDC bid. The exhibition presents both the present and future of the city.

Alongside this, the pavilion introduces Busan's design policy of building the city together with its residents. It draws on cases such as the Future Busan Design Group and the Citizens' Empathy Design Group, in which citizens identify urban problems and take part in the design process. It also displays Busan-made design products, including the Busan Sea Pizza (WDC PIZZA), developed jointly with local food brand Leejaemo Pizza. The exhibition also features design landmarks in Busan chosen by citizens.

"The Taiwan Design Museum's Busan pavilion is an international promotional platform introducing Busan's vision and current progress as it prepares to become the 2028 World Design Capital, staged in Taipei, which itself experienced the World Design Capital designation in 2016," Mayor Jeon Jae-soo said. "We will widely promote Busan's design capabilities and urban vision to successfully prepare for WDC Busan 2028."