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네이버 공유 카카오 공유 트위터 공유 페이스북 공유

Broadening Awareness of Korea in the African Region

The Korean Contemporary Art Exhibition featured a wide variety of Oriental and Western paintings d by 23 artists from Korea. Despite the differing styles of the individual artists, which spanned a vast spectrum, there was also a common ground of distinctively Korean sentiments underlying the exhibited works.



The Bab El Kebir Gallery, a national exhibition center of Morocco where the exhibition was presented, was originally part of a historic fortress of the Udaiya district of Rabat, the capital of Morocco. As such, visitors were also able to appreciate the magnificence of Morocco’s ancient architecture. For me, the exhibition venue seemed to be teeming with a lively vibrancy, as compared to the relative sameness of more modern facilities. Indeed, this intriguing atmosphere made the venue a unique site, where any artist would be pleased to display his creative works.
As the head of the Korean side, I took part in the preparations for the exhibition and attended the opening ceremony as well, along with Kim Jong-hak, who represented the other participating artists. For the organization and setup of the exhibition, Kim Jin-dong of the Korean Embassy in Rabat provided valuable assistance, while Ambassador Yoo Jeong-hee also lent a helping hand, which contributed much to the event’s overall success.
This first of its kind exhibition in Rabat, which was hosted by the Moroccan government, included the attendance of a notable number of local dignitaries, such as the country’s Vice Minister of Culture, at the opening ceremony. In addition, highlights of the exhibition that were aired on Moroccan TV helped to introduce aspects of Korea’s contemporary art to the people of Morocco. Moreover, presentations of Korea’s traditional performing arts, which were staged in conjunction with the opening of the exhibition, aroused interest of Korean culture among local residents, who generally have little opportunity for this kind of experience.
Even today, awareness and understanding of Korea in countries with Islamic cultures, like Morocco, are noticeably limited, due in large part to a lack of exposure and two-way exchanges. As such, this event again demonstrated the value and effectiveness of cultural exchanges to promote more friendly and cooperative relations between the peoples of Korea and the international community.

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