WEBZINE ACC

After the cool spring rain of April, May has returned to us greener than ever. Green shoots feed off the spring rain to grow robust and lively, bringing to mind many words we often associate with springtime: youth; late spring; early summer; family month; green; May is green, and we grow on; and that is the Children’s Day.

“HOW FUN” is an open children and families festival put together by the National Asia Culture Center (ACC) for the whole family, realized together with the children, artists, public organizations, and companies. Now on its 10th iteration, this year’s “HOW FUN” features a wide range of things to see, enjoy, and experience in exhibitions, performances, educational programs, and more under the theme “Let’s Go Play! A Cultural Journey to Enjoy the City.” Join us as we explore the world of “HOW FUN 10” in the expansive interior of the ACC Children!

“Let’s Go Play! A Cultural Journey to Enjoy the City”
- Festival Slogan -

Following the previous event’s example, this year’s festival was organized around the theme of urban culture. The contents offered by the ACC were reinterpreted for the children’s perspective into one big city trip, in which kids and other family members can experience the different facets of urban life and culture.

The “City Watcher” program leads children in exploring the city’s urban phenomena and cultural elements through play, while the “City Explorer” program unites different facets of urban culture from cities worldwide, drawing upon the help of international exchange partners. Meanwhile, the “City Creator” program invites the children to imagine future cities and envision their lives in their dream city. Like the festival’s slogan, participants can enjoy different ways to explore the city.

I examined the glittering media installation, “The City of the Children,” on the glass windows of the ACC Children’s Lobby. This archival media exhibition, organized in collaboration with the Finnish Art Centre for Children and Young People, features drawings from 100 children representing 55 countries. These artworks depict the cities where the children reside, providing visitors with a unique experience of a global journey through cities worldwide. How many of these cities have I visited myself?

Yang Jazoo’s photographs of various organisms, observed and magnified under an electron microscope during her journey with children, Moon Kyung’s tape art on large canvases depicting various aspects of the city, and drawings of children all come together to showcase a new city as seen through the eyes of artists and children at a festival created by everyone.

The “Structure of the Night” welcomes us into the night of the city, where the works of artist Park Jae-hwan meet the night that we and the children create anew.

Once night falls in the city, it moves onward to space. In the far future, what languages will we speak, and what cities on what planet will we live in? “A Dictionary Sent to Space and the Future” invites us to imagine how we could show the world we currently live in to the universe and future city dwellers beyond Earth through the experience of communicating with future urbanites.

Performances for Children, Fairy Tales for Grown-Ups

To commemorate the Children’s Day, Family Month, and Year of the Blue Dragon, the ACC hosted various performances in addition to “HOW FUN 10.” The three ACC-created and produced performances of “A Miracle 999 Years in Waiting,” “Finding Shreya,” and “Mirhai’s Torn Fairytale” in particular, also resonated deeply with the grown-ups despite being performances intended for children.

Set in Azerbaijan, “Finding Shreya”¹ tells the story of Shreya, a girl waiting for her father to return home from war, as well as her friends Jubbulu, Aghja, and their new friend Svet. When Shreya is forced to flee the village away from war, Jubbulu the doll and Aghja the pigeon set out in search of their friend, running into Svet the cat on the way.

Based on the Turkmen picture book “The Smiling Dragon² ,” “Mirhai’s Torn Fairytale” is a gugak theater performance telling the story of Mir and Hai, who seek to complete the picture book depicting the story of Mirhai, king of the dragons. Can Mir and Hai complete the torn fairy tale and restore the story of Mirhai?

“A Miracle 999 Years in Waiting,” a performance created by three fathers born in the year of the snake, tells the story of the Red and Blue Imugi, who train to join their friend Black Imugi in dragonhood. The two friends have worked hard for the last 999 years with the dream of becoming dragons. One day, however, the Blue Imugi wakes up with a question: Why must one try so hard to become a dragon? Will the Blue Imugi find the answer?

We may have grown to become adults and parents, but we were once children who sang the same song on this joyful day. We had our favorite tales, our imaginary friends, and the dreams of the people we wanted to become. We were fearless and knew the answer to the question, “What do you want to become when you grow up?” Now, we have grown, and things may not be the same, but perhaps it is good to rediscover our childhood selves with children’s performances once in a while.

Grown-ups can rediscover their childhood with the help of wisdom they have attained, just like “Grandpa Big-nose,” the smartest dragon in the world in “Mirhai’s Torn Fairytale.” Grown-ups can also have friends who can be brave for each other’s sake, just like the trio in “Finding Shreya.” Moreover, just like the Imugi in “A Miracle 999 Years in Waiting,” grown-ups face their lives and live as protagonists of their own tales. These performances gave me the hope to cheer them on as they move forward with their stories.

May Will Always Return to Us

Children’s Day week at the ACC is full of things to enjoy, from HOW FUN 10 to ACC-created performances, the Asia Culture Market, and the ACC Big Door Concert, filling up the space equal to 22 football stadiums with fun for both children and grown-ups. One cannot help but wonder what beautiful things await in the next Children’s Day week.

In the “Moving Cityscape” program of HOW FUN 10, I was able to move through the city’s sceneries and its people that artist Shin Yerin had realized through her 3D pen. In that bustling street, like any other in the cities I’ve been to, I was asked this question:

The children, who will grow up like the blue sky and the green plants, and the grown-ups who lead their lives today—what did they experience here, today, and what new world did they witness? How will that experience and feeling color their lives?

Children’s Day in Korea represents a wish for children to grow upright, wise, and brave. Even the oldest grown-ups were once children, and this May made me look forward to the ones that will come in the future and what we will be like when we all meet again the next time.