3rd Culture Communication Forum will held on Sept. 4

The Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI) is hosting the third Culture Communication Forum from Sept. 4 to 6 in a bid to raise awareness of Korean culture.

“This forum will give opinion leaders around the world an opportunity to experience Korean culture and to share their own. We’re hoping this will contribute to elevating Korea’s brand image across the world,” Choi Jung-wha, the CICI president, told The Korea Times.

Fifteen opinion leaders from 14 countries have been invited to the three-day session, which is comprised of small-scale getting-to-know-Korea programs and a conference “Communicating through culture: The key to opening hearts and minds.”

Participants include Zhang Jun from the Chinese Kunqu opera, and Hermann Parzinger, president of Germany’s Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation.



Zhang is regarded as China’s most prominent traditional opera performer. He is actively involving in promoting Kunqu. Last year, he was honored as the UNESCO Artist for Peace. Chinese actress Gong Li and the China Disabled People’s Performing Art Troupe are the only previous recipients from China.

Parzinger is a leading archaeologist, who excavated a 2,500-year old mummy in Mongolia. Between 2003 and 2008, he represented the German Archaeological Institute, and is now the president of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation.

The guests are expected to experience a wide range of Korean culture.

Choe Kwang-shik, minister of culture, sports and tourism, will invite guests to Deoksu Palace in Seoul for a performance of Gugak, traditional Korean music. Choe will be a narrator.

The participants will watch “Sugungga,” a traditional pansori opera directed by German director Achim Freyes. They’ll also see artifacts from the Korea Furniture Museum, the National Museum of Korea and the Kokdu Museum.

At the conference on Sept. 6, Dominique Wolton, research director at the French National Center for Scientific Research, will give a speech on cultural globalization and the role of Korea, which will be followed by Kim Ran-do, a professor at Seoul National University, who will discuss the communication gap between generations. The CICI will present a survey result on influential Korean cultural commodities, as well. The forum will close with a gala dinner with 300 guests.