Gwanak-gu drew large crowds Saturday for the second day of the 2026 Gwanak Ganggam-chan Festival, offering a range of family-friendly programs that kept the festive spirit running high.
At 1 p.m. in the main plaza, popular history lecturer Seol Min-seok hosted the "Ganggam-chan Talk Show," exploring the life of the Goryeo-era general under the theme "The Man Who Saved the Nation with His Brush." A quiz competition called "Challenge! Golden Bell" followed, inviting residents to test their knowledge of General Ganggam-chan's legacy. Both programs drew enthusiastic responses from the audience by presenting the general's achievements and historical significance in an accessible and entertaining format.
Across the festival grounds, visitors took part in a variety of community-driven programs. All 21 neighborhoods of Gwanak-gu participated in a district-wide showcase, while an eco-friendly play zone reimagined Goryeo-era weapons and the tactics of the Battle of Gwiju as interactive games for children. A Goryeo-themed market offered an array of food and local products for festivalgoers to enjoy.
This year's festival also expanded into Nakseong Flower Garden, a garden-style rest and cultural space that opened in March, where visitors could explore a 10th-anniversary archive exhibition tracing the history of the Gwanak Ganggam-chan Festival. Additional programs included a children's painting contest, the Inheon Arts Festival, an open-stage performance series and a traditional archery experience at Gwanakjeong — all designed to let families engage with the general's history together.
The highlight of the evening came at 7 p.m. in the main plaza, where the festival's signature 10th-anniversary special performance — "Ganggam-chan, Born of a Star & Aerial Fireworks Performance" — captivated the crowd.
The performance reimagined the legend of General Ganggam-chan's birth — said to have been heralded by a falling star over Nakseongdae a thousand years ago — against the backdrop of a futuristic space station. Blending traditional performing arts, contemporary dance, live music, video projection and aerial pyrotechnics, the show conveyed the general's courage, solidarity and community spirit. The aerial fireworks display that closed the performance brought the festival's energy to a crescendo.
Gwanak-gu District Mayor Park Jun-hee said the district would work to ensure the Gwanak Ganggam-chan Festival, now in its 10th year, endures for the next 100 or even 1,000 years as a defining history and culture festival that all residents can take pride in. He added that the final day of the festival would feature a civic arts celebration and a variety of programs for the whole family, and encouraged residents to visit with family and friends to create lasting memories.
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