Every year during the fourth week of May, UNESCO Culture and Arts Education Week takes place to highlight the importance of arts education worldwide. This year’s event was organized in connection with the Korea Arts and Culture Education Service’s (KACES) push to be recognized as a UNESCO Category 2 Center (international organization).
The theme for this year’s “Culture and Arts Education Forum” was “Questions for Transition – Culture and Arts Education, Why Do We Keep Doing It?” This was planned based on discussions from six “Transition Roundtables” held in April with 120 researchers, administrators, and local stakeholders. The forum aimed to analyze the current state of domestic culture and arts education and seek future directions for policies and institutions.
The detailed program featured themed presentations and discussions on shifting the direction of arts education, including strengthening and expanding social culture and arts education, embracing diverse values like the humanities, and expanding the social role of arts education.
While it might sound a bit provocative, the theme “Questions for Transition – Culture and Arts Education, Why Do We Keep Doing It?” reflects the urgent needs of those working in the field. The forum focused on identifying current challenges and sharing practical attempts to find a breakthrough.
The event began with opening remarks from Lim Jin-taek, President of KACES, and was divided into two parts. President Lim noted, “UNESCO Culture and Arts Education Week, now in its 15th year, has become a symbolic event where the world shares the value of arts education since it was proclaimed in 2011 at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris upon the proposal of the Korean government.” He added that from the 2010 “Seoul Agenda” declaration to the adoption of the “UNESCO Culture and Arts Education Framework,” the international community has confirmed that arts education is a key pillar for the sustainable development of humanity.
President Lim further emphasized, “KACES is continuously contemplating how to expand the agency’s role into a concept of culture that citizens can truly feel, including restructuring policy projects and the role of arts education in response to various social changes.” He highlighted that the agency is currently seeking momentum amidst policy shifts, such as being designated as a specialized agency for humanities and spiritual culture.
“Based on the expertise built over the past 20 years, KACES intends to look back at the progress and achievements of culture and arts education, share ‘Questions for Transition,’ and think about what goals arts education should pursue to further spread the value of culture and arts,” President Lim stated. He concluded by hoping the forum would be a place to discuss how to implement human-centered arts education that integrates into daily life.
Part 1, moderated by Ahn Tae-ho, Deputy Director of the Korea Culture Policy Institute, began with a presentation by Yeom Shin-gyu, Director of the Korea Culture Policy Institute. Then, Lim Jae-choon, CEO of Community Studio 104, presented on “Why are the system and the field drifting apart?” while Lee Hee-won, CEO of Creative Space NN, shared vivid examples regarding “Things that slow down the footsteps of the field.”
Part 2 was moderated by culture and arts planner Choi Sun-young. Yang Jae-hyuk, CEO of Culture Community Dongne, gave a presentation titled “Why is arts education not art?” and Shim Han-gi, CEO of Youth Culture Community Pum, suggested how humanities and arts education can meet.
Additionally, Shin Hyung-man, CEO of Culture and Arts Planning Group Ssam, Choi Ra-yoon, Assistant Manager at the Incheon Culture and Arts Education Support Center of the Incheon Foundation for Arts and Culture, and Park Jin-myung, CEO of Thinking Sea, presented on practical administrative transitions and suggestions for changes in the field.
Overall, the forum was praised as a venue for redefining the role of culture and arts education in a changing environment and seeking new directions for policy and institutional operation through in-depth discussions by domestic and international experts.
