The government, business associations, and cultural organizations have joined forces to expand "Culture Day" nationwide, which will be held every Wednesday starting April 1.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism signed a memorandum of understanding with 11 major cultural and business organizations at Art Korea Lab in Jongno, Seoul, on March 18 to expand the Culture Day program. Under the agreement, participating organizations will establish a cooperative framework to promote Culture Day.
Major national arts institutions will offer specialized content in addition to existing Culture Day benefits. The National Museum of Korea will host "Conversations with Curators," while the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art will provide educational programs linked to the "Damien Hirst Special Exhibition." Other offerings include a singing bowl meditation and yoga program at the Cheongju National Museum, "Monthly Humanities Encounters" at the National Library of Korea, and a lecture on "Generative AI: Yesterday and Today" at the National Sejong Library.
The Buyeo National Museum will run a children's program called "Wednesday Incense Burner Expert!" and the National Orchestra of Korea will hold a children's concert titled "Sinnarac Mannarac." The Jeongdong Theater will offer 20-30% discounts on performances including the play "Kyrie" and traditional performance "Gwangdae," while the National Theater Company will discount tickets for "Banya Ajae."
Programs highlighting regional characteristics will expand significantly through partnerships with local cultural foundations. Weekly Wednesday busking performances will be held at venues including the Seogwipo Chilsimni Outdoor Stage in Jeju. Cultural programs for industrial complex workers and events utilizing local cultural city assets are also planned.
The performing arts sector is contributing as well. The Korea Musical Association will work with major performance groups to provide ticket discounts and special same-day remaining seat offers. Professional volleyball and basketball teams will also participate with admission discounts. To promote reading culture, the ministry partnered with Kyobo Book Centre to offer 50% discounts on e-book rentals and e-cash refunds every Wednesday.
Participating organizations at the signing ceremony included the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Culture City Council, National Association of Regional Cultural Foundations, Korea Federation of SMEs, Korean Library Association, Korea Mecenat Association, Korea Musical Association, Korea Museum Association, Korean Private Museum Association, Federation of Korean Booksellers Associations, and Korea Regional Cultural Foundation Federation.
"Cooperation with private organizations is key to successfully establishing Culture Day, which is expanding to every Wednesday," said Kim Young-soo, First Vice Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
Film industry groups did not participate in the ceremony, reportedly due to the lack of a unified discount policy. A ministry official explained, "Movie theaters plan to decide whether to expand participation based on each company's circumstances."
