Visitors in Venice, Italy, look at traditional Hanji (traditional paper) pieces at this year's Traditional Korea Festival, which ran there from April 17-22. (Korea Craft & Design Foundation's official Facebook page)

By Wu Jinhua 

The capital of Indonesia will host a festival showcasing the beauty of traditional Korean culture.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Aug. 31 said it will hold the Traditional Korea Festival, That's Korea with the Korea Craft & Design Foundation from Sept. 1-13 in Jakarta.

The festival promotes traditional Korean culture overseas through exhibitions of Hanbok (traditional clothing), Hanji (traditional paper) and Hansik (traditional cuisine) and joint projects with international organizations. Following the festival's first half held in the major Italian cities of Milan and Venice on the occasion of this year's Milan Design Week, Jakarta will host the second to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Indonesia.

To kick off the festival, the event "That's Korea: Visual Order and Color" will be held from Sept. 1-13 at the K-Brand Overseas Promotion Center (KOREA 360) on Jakarta's Lotte Avenue featuring media artworks that use traditional dancheong, or multicolored patterns on wooden buildings, and refreshments using seasonal ingredients grown in Korea.

A Hanbok fashion show on Sept. 8 will display a variety of interpretations of the traditional clothing.

At the center's Digital Experience Zone, visitors can experience the Joseon Dynasty through the metaverse and virtual reality. Other traditional lifestyle and cultural experience events will include making Hanji fans and bookmarks and tying maedeup (traditional knots).

From Sept. 5-10, Jakarta's leading multicultural complex Dia.lo.gue will feature seminars, exhibitions and events on traditional culture. Through "Hansik: That's Soban" from Sept. 6-10 at Central Park Mall, visitors can try activities like making snacks, crafting mini soban (small dining table) and assembling tea bags of hanyak (herbal medicine).

Jung Hyang-mi, director-general of the ministry's Regional Culture Policy Bureau, said, "This event is an opportunity to broaden interest in K-Culture to all areas of traditional culture like Hanbok, Hanji and Hansik and share the distinctive style and beauty of our traditional culture worldwide."

This is the official promotional poster of the Traditional Korea Festival: That's Korea to run from Sept. 1-13 in Indonesia's capital of Jakarta. (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism)

jane0614@korea.kr