Korea Hanok Culture Biennale Deepens Emotion with Traditional Wedding Ceremony

A Variety of Family-Friendly Experience Programs Available

The Korea Hanok Culture Biennale elaborates on the meaning of marriage through traditional wedding ceremonies. Provided by Muan County

The 2025 Korea Hanok Culture Biennale, being held in Yeongam, South Jeolla Province, elevated the festival's dignity and emotional resonance by recreating a traditional wedding ceremony.

On November 9, a traditional wedding ceremony took place at the Yeongam Wood Culture Experience Center as part of a special event for the biennale. In a setting that recreated the unique beauty of hanok and the traditional wedding culture rooted in old ways of life, Yeongam resident Kim Jeonghee and Tran Thi My Linh were formally united in marriage after a ten-year engagement.

The couple held their wedding against the backdrop of a traditional hanok at the foot of Mount Wolchul, receiving congratulations from family, relatives, local neighbors, and tourists. The ceremony began with a pungmul troupe’s opening performance, reaching its climax as the groom entered on a white horse and the bride arrived in a flower palanquin. Guests captured the elegant traditional wedding attire of the bride and groom with their mobile phone cameras, offering their congratulations.

In particular, the couple exchanged a kiss in response to master singer Kim Sookhee’s performance of "Sarangga," earning a big round of applause. During the subsequent paebaek ritual, guests tossed chestnuts and jujubes to wish the couple a long and happy marriage.

Groom Kim Jeonghee shared, "At first, I felt burdened by the idea of holding a traditional wedding in front of so many people, but it became an unforgettable and precious memory. I will strive to live happily from now on."

The biennale will continue until November 16, with a variety of family-friendly experience programs available over the weekend. Activities include making cutting boards, pottery wheel experiences, wood mobile painting, making mother-of-pearl gat keyrings, decorating traditional patterns, and trying on hanbok, all conducted in collaboration with students from Gurim Technical High School and local artists.

Additionally, the main exhibition hall will offer tea ceremony experiences three times daily-at 11 a.m., 1 p.m., and 3 p.m.-available through on-site reservations.

Furthermore, at 2 p.m. on November 15, the international academic forum "Beyond the Wall: The Encounter of Hanok and Humanities" will be held, aiming to share the humanistic significance embodied in hanok and traditional East Asian houses.

Shin Hwanjong, Director of Urban Design for Yeongam County, stated, "I hope visitors to the Yeongam Wood Culture Experience Center this weekend will enjoy the diverse exhibitions and hands-on activities, and experience the depth of hanok culture."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.