The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister YU In Chon, MCST) in collaboration with the Korea Craft & Design Foundation (President JANG Dong Kwang, KCDF) organize the Hanbok Expo 2024, Korea’s premier hanbok fair. This event will take place from August 9 (Fri) to August 12 (Mon) at the Art Hall in Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP). First Vice Minister of the MCST, YONG Ho Sung, will grace the opening ceremony on August 9 (Fri) to celebrate the launch of the Hanbok Expo 2024 and offer encouragement to all those stakeholders and officials prepared the event.

Marking its seventh year, the Hanbok Expo 2024 will showcase a wide array of innovative hanbok products from 112 companies, offering discounts of up to 80%. The event will also feature a business promotion zone, where visitors can explore the results of hanbok culture promotion projects. Highlights include the special hanbok exhibition “The Hidden Charm: Hanbok’s Modern Revival” and the award-winning works from the 2024 Hanbok Design Project Competition. Additional attractions include an education zone showcasing the activities of traditional clothing departments, a cooperation zone highlighting the culture of traditional clothing, and an interactive zone where visitors can engage in traditional lifestyle activities, such as making traditional papers[1] and ramie brooms, and capture memories with photo opportunities.

The expo will offer a diverse range of products for sale, including traditional hanbok, casual hanbok, accessories, and even hanbok for pets, with discounts averaging 30% and reaching up to 80%. Customers will also receive a variety of free gifts with their purchases, such as bookmarks made from traditional Korean Nobang fabric and coasters adorned with ink-and-wash Korean flower designs, depending on the purchase amount.

In Special Exhibition Hall I, the Arumjigi Foundation, dedicated to preserving and nurturing traditional culture, will present rarely seen costumes from Goguryeo, Unified Silla, Goryeo, and Joseon under the theme “The Hidden Charm: Hanbok’s Modern Revival.” In Special Exhibition Hall II, Onjium, known for promoting Korean clothing culture, will showcase a range of modernized hanbok fabrics for enhanced practicality and functionality. This exhibition, themed “Onjium: Development and Use of Hanbok Materials,” will highlight innovations in traditional fabric weaving methods. In Special Exhibition Hall III, the Arumjigi Foundation will operate a hanbok experience and cultural education booth, allowing visitors to explore and appreciate the culturally rich aspects of traditional hanbok, showcasing the beautiful value of traditional clothing.

A fashion show titled “Trajectory of Time: Hanbok” will explore the evolution of hanbok, bridging tradition and the future. Directed by Professor LEE Jin Hee from the School of Drama at the Korea National University of Arts, the show will modernize traditional hanbok and blend it with digital art to create a vibrant and innovative visual experience.

The business promotion zone will highlight the results of various hanbok culture promotion projects supported by the MCST in collaboration with the KCDF. The exhibit will showcase 30 winning pieces from the 2024 Hanbok Design Project Competition, themed “Hanbok Beyond Hanbok: Inheritance and Reinterpretation,” along with 100 types of hanbok work uniforms for transportation and leisure services developed in 2023. In addition, the Hanbok Culture Creative Space, a Regional Branch in Gangneung, established in 2022 to revitalize local hanbok culture, will be promoted.

The Education Zone operates the Hanbok Marumbang, offering on-site training programs for hanbok professionals and aspiring designers. It will feature hanbok curricula and student creative projects from Dankook University Graduate School, Baehwa Women’s University, Wonkwang Digital University, and Hannam University. These institutions continue the tradition of traditional clothing education to preserve and advance hanbok.

In the cooperation zone, the Korea Heritage Agency will present traditional lifestyle culture through craft products that merge traditional and modern aesthetics. The Department of Traditional Arts and Crafts at Korea National University of Heritage, specializing in traditional textile crafts and Korean fabrics, will showcase the beauty of natural materials and the essence of traditional clothing culture, focusing on ramie,[2] a traditional Korean fabric valued for its use in summer wear.

In the interactive zone, visitors can create personalized paper using 20 types of patterned stamps inspired by early 19th and 20th-century paper from the Joseon royal family, as well as 10 types of Andong traditional hanji. They can also make ramie brooms by weaving colorful hemp threads and ramie grass. In addition, there is a photo zone where visitors can capture the vibrant experiences and memories of the event.

On August 9, Hanbok Ambassador SONG So Hee will visit the event to boost enthusiasm.

Hanbok Ambassador SONG So Hee will also visit the Hanbok Expo 2024 on August 9 (FRI) to heighten the excitement. She will tour the site with visitors, sharing the experience with them.

For more information on the Hanbok Expo 2024, please visit the official website (www.kcdf.or.kr/hanbokexpo) or contact the Hanbok Store Office via email at hanbokexpo@kcdf.kr or by phone at 02-398-1631/1637. Those wearing hanbok or who register in advance can visit the Hanbok Expo 2024 free of charge. Pre-registration is available until August 8 (WED) at the Hanbok Expo 2024 Pre-Registration System (https://hanbokexpo2024.govent.kr/).