South Korea’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Kim Pankyu, has urged for the worldwide promotion of Korean culture, particularly through the iconic ‘Hanbok’, Korea’s traditional attire.
Pankyu made the statement during the 2025 Hanbok exhibition opening at the Nike Art Gallery in Abuja on Thursday. The exhibition aimed to share the historical and cultural significance of Hanbok with the global audience.
Hanbok is not just a garment but a symbol of Korean cultural pride, worn during important ceremonies and celebrations. The women’s hanbok includes a short jacket (jeogori) paired with a full, long skirt (chima), while the men’s version consists of a jacket and loose trousers (baji), reflecting the elegance and timelessness of Korean tradition.
The exhibition was organised by the Korean Cultural Centre in Nigeria (KCCN) with the theme ‘Hanbok Reborn as Art”,
It shone as a contemporary light on the enduring values and rich history of Hanbok, Korea’s precious cultural heritage.
Pankyu said the exhibition aims to transcend mere viewing, fostering an environment where audiences could directly engage with and experience the content.
“It offers a gateway to understanding Korea’s unique spirit and history through contemporary artwork by the ‘Hanbok’.
“It also played a crucial role in conveying the value of traditional culture to future generations and in promoting Korea’s cultural heritage on the global stage, “he said.
According to him, the concept of ‘Hanbok, Reborn as Art’ evolves from the basic and crucial foundation of Korean tradition and heritage, which is the traditional Korean outfit ‘Hanbok’.
The ambassador said the earliest origins of the hanbok could be traced back to the late three kingdoms period of Korea, just as many other aspects in their culture and society evolved but not lost.
“As the hanbok embodies the Korean people’s history, culture, tradition, belief system and nation, it has adopted various forms in response to modern times.
“This is what the gifted 11 Korean artists have tried to achieve through their artwork here.
“All the way in Korea, these modern artists have explored Korean identity using elements of the Hanbok, which bare shapes, colours and more to create artworks for the global world.
“We hope that you will not only experience the novelty and creativity of these artists, but you will also witness the uniqueness of the hanbok,” he said.
Pankyu appreciated Mama Nike Okundaye for the friendship they had cultivated with her and applauded her for always being a supporter of Korean culture.
Also speaking, Mama Okundaye, a renowned artist, thanked the South Korean ambassador for making it possible for Nigeria and Korea to partner and share their various cultures together.
Okundaye, who is the founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nike Art Gallery, said she was so impressed with the artworks in the South Korean museum during her visit.
According to her, everything about tourism in South Korea is art, as well as their food.
“Such exhibition that comes once in year gives us the opportunity to share our culture with other countries.
” So for South Korea to come with their artworks, art and culture is the next step for the country. So I urged everybody who is an artist in Nigeria to come and see these beautiful walls.
“You cannot believe it, that is hand-painted with acrylic, with oil paint and for them to come all the way,” she said.
She further said that the closest thing to our skin was textile, adding that they want people to form a partnership with them in order to showcase their own textile.
“When I went to South Korea, everybody had to wear their fabric, now they are here; they also love their fabric a lot because this is how they dress.
“Partnering with these different countries is a welcome development. We have 54 countries in Africa, and Nigeria is always open to any country that wants to partner with them,” she said.
Okundaye said Nigerian textile is very rich like the South Korean textile, but Korean textile is made for their weather.
“So when you wear Nigerian textile, you feel the grease, because it is 100 per cent cotton and they are similar because Korean textile is also like that,” she said.
She appreciated the Korean ambassador, as well as the people of South Korea for deeming it fit to bring such to Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria.
Ms Yunjin Lee, KCCN Event Manager, said the exhibition, which focused on ‘Hanbok’, brought 11 artists from the Savina Museum of Korea, who curated the artworks.
“Creating the artworks, especially when we are collecting the artworks for this exhibition, we focused on the vivid colours, because I think in Nigeria, the costumes are focusing on the vivid colours.
” For Koreans, it is a traditional thing that we need to continue our tradition, and I can see a lot in Nigeria as well, as regards similarities to traditional costumes,” she said.
Mr Han Sang-IK, Curator of Savina Museum of Contemporary Art, said the exhibition aimed at exploring new artistic values and possibilities at the intersection of tradition and modernity.
” We have 11 artists who exhibited their artworks, their artworks are unique because it is a contemporary art that explores Korean identity and culture”.
Reports shows that the artists’ artworks that were exhibited were Kwon, Ki Soo, Kim, Sir Hyun, Nam, Kyung Min, Lee, Don Ah, Yang, Dae Won, Lee, Soo In, Jung, Hai Yun, among others.
The highlight of the event was a fashion show by models of KCCN and Nike Art Gallery, showcasing the beautiful attire of both countries.
