The Korea Heritage Service (Administrator Heo Min) announced Thursday that it will host the "First Shinsegae Square Media Art Awards," a global media art contest themed "King Sejong, Origin of K-Heritage," in partnership with Shinsegae Department Store (CEO Park Ju-hyung) from June 15 to August 7.
The contest is a collaborative project in which domestic and international creators produce new content using digital heritage assets held by the Korea Heritage Service, with winning works showcased on Shinsegae Square, an oversized electronic billboard installed at Shinsegae Department Store's main store in Jung-gu, Seoul. The Korea Heritage Service explained that the project "was designed to reinterpret national heritage in the fields of science and art as contemporary media art, drawing on the creative spirit of King Sejong the Great."
The competition is divided into two categories: an "Original Section" soliciting anamorphic media art works of approximately 30 to 90 seconds, and a "Template Section" soliciting short media art works of about 5 seconds. Domestic and international creators wishing to participate can apply through the Shinsegae Square Media Art Awards website, which will be in operation starting June 15.
A total of eight winners will receive combined prize money of 50 million won along with the Administrator of the Korea Heritage Service Award. In particular, the winner of the Original Section's grand prize, the "Grand Square," will receive 20 million won and the benefit of having their work broadcast on Shinsegae Square. The awards ceremony will be held in September, and winning works will be unveiled to the public through Shinsegae Square broadcasts and a separate exhibition.
A Korea Heritage Service official said, "We will continue our active administration so that this serves as a meaningful precedent for public-private collaboration, combining the Korea Heritage Service's public digital assets, Shinsegae Square as a private platform, and the artistry of domestic and international creators to spread the value of national heritage to the world."
