WEBZINE ACC

It is now 2025, the Year of the Blue Snake. We say goodbye to the last year and reaffirm new wishes, hopes, and goals. The ACC Children reopened after renovation at the end of last year, and it greets the New Year with an exhibition that details the stories of seasons and the New Year collected from all over Asia.

Once Ipchun (February 3–18) arrives as the herald of spring, the children born thereafter will be born under the sign of the snake. Why do we consider spring to be the start of the year? There are many answers to that question, but one interesting answer can be found in Kazakhstan, Central Asia. The people of Kazakhstan celebrate the new year with Nauryz, a holiday akin to Seollal in Korea. Like its counterpart in Korea, the people of Kazakhstan come together in their hometown, wear traditional clothes, and enjoy good food to celebrate the holiday.

Nauryz falls on March 22 this year as the starting point of spring in Kazakhstan, which, according to this story, was decided by the 12 animals of the zodiac. The 12 animals, each representing a specific year in the 12-year cycle, start their discussion about the seasons they like. They talk about the reasons why their favorite season has to be the New Year, but they can’t find an answer that satisfies everyone. So, how did they manage to decide upon spring as the starting point of the year?

Growing up in Korea, one hears different stories and myths about how the 12 zodiac animals got their order, starting with the rat and ending with the pig. Those who grew up with the popular anime “Juuni Senshi Bakuretsu Eto Ranger” might remember the exact order of the zodiac with a song, so for Koreans, the story of the New Year and the zodiac in Kazakhstan provides an interesting contrast that still feels quite familiar.

If you are interested in the Kazakh zodiac, how it differs from the Korean one, and the story of how the animals figured out when the New Year starts, head to the ACC Children and take a trip in search of Asian stories.

Stepping into the World of Picture Books through Immersive Content

Collecting and compiling old stories from all over Asia has been an ongoing project of the National Asian Culture Center (ACC). Thanks to this project, the ACC produced a surprisingly large collection of picture books. Five of such picture books were the basis for this immersive and interactive special exhibition, “Asian Story Bundle: An Adventure through Picture Books.”

Picture books featured in the exhibition include “When Does New Years Start?” a story from Kazakhstan that opened this article; “My Cloud Friend,” a fun story about natural phenomena; “Suluusuu in Issyk-kul Lake,” a story of a queen protecting the beautiful Issyk-kul Lake; “Three Friends,” an adaptation of a story passed down among nomadic groups in Kazakhstan; and “Gaegulgaegul Goraegorae,” a retelling of a Vietnamese myth.

Children can step into the worlds presented in these five stories in the ACC Children’s Event Hall and join the protagonists in their search for treasure. First, “When Does New Years Start?”provided a foundation for the first experience, where children can color and scan their favorite zodiac animal to be animated and screened on the wall.

The Uzbek story of “My Cloud Friend” inspired a space that teaches children how to reflect on their thoughts and expand their imagination with ever-changing clouds. “Suluusuu,” the name of the queen featured in “Suluusuu in Issyk-kul Lake,” means “beautiful water” in Kyrgyz. In the exhibition based on this story, participants go on a treasure hunt with sieves in their hands, all in search of the treasure trove of beautiful Queen Suluusuu in Issyk-kul Lake.

In the story “Three Friends,” the titular friends go on a journey in search of the sun, which disappears from the sky at dusk. Oh, no! The trio runs into a wolf! To save the three friends from the big bad wolf, the children must raise their voices in the exhibition. The last picture book, “Gaegulgaegul Goraegorae,” is a story of a frog’s search for Mr. Whale to save the forest from drought. The children need to jump in line with the beat to help Gurgur the frog find Mr. Whale and invite the rain back to the forest.

“Asian Story Bundle: An Adventure through Picture Books,” an immersive content–based exhibition that invites children into the world of picture books, brings the stories of Asian countries from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam to the children, along with their culture, geographical features, and the wonder of nature. It offers not only a more immersive experience for the visitors but also topics to be reflected on, such as natural phenomena and environmental damage, through the animal characters, clouds, and the blue lake featured in the story.

I can’t help but smile at the fun the children will have in the five exhibitions of “Asian Story Bundle: An Adventure through Picture Books” and “Old Asian Stories Carved into Rocks” and their budding imagination and sensibilities that they will nurture in these worlds of fantasy brought to life.

The author of “My Cloud Friend” says the ability to dream leads us to great achievement, and friendship helps us improve our lives, adding that when children attain these two abilities, our lives can be transformed into the world of picture books. We hope the stories of children and grown-ups who visited this program will end with a “happily ever after.”

How to Find the Asian Story Bundle

If you are interested in learning more about different stories from Asia, come to the Children’s Event Hall in the ACC Children for the “Asian Story Bundle: An Adventure through Picture Books” with your children. It is an immersive and interactive program for children that will be on offer until March 3, 2025. If you are visiting with your children, no matter how tempting it may be to jump into the exhibit yourself, make sure to let the children go first and enjoy themselves.

For more information on the program and the fees, head to the official website of the ACC.¹⁾ Combination tickets for the Asian Story Bundle exhibition and Culture Adventure are available at discounted prices, but they can only be purchased on-site in person. If you want to get more value out of your ticket, make sure to look up the program and booking information on the ACC’s website before visiting.

If you don’t want to participate in the program or if you’d rather read the stories in peace, you can check out the Play Library at the ACC Children or visit the ACC Archive & Research to find the picture books on display. As I wrap this article up, I hope the positive power of children’s stories, woven together from old Asian stories, can be continued in the hearts of their readers.