Taking the arts to kids

South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is launching another initiative to bring the arts to the country’s most remote areas. The project is geared toward educating children and the elderly living in non-metropolitan areas where access to museums, theatres and concert halls is limited.
The Ministry has organised several programmes to provide more opportunities to get involved in the world of art and culture, including the “Moving Arts Bus”, “Visiting Arts Education”, “Exciting Arts Trip” and the “Spreading Talent Bus”.
“We think it’s important to give people an opportunity to experience and learn about the art world, no matter their geographic location,” says the ministry’s Kim Tae-hoon.
The mobile arts programmes are, in part, modelled after “Arts Bus” project in the US and Hong Kong, where buses are driven to remote areas to reach children who are unable to experience cultural or arts performances and events.
In February the Moving Arts Bus, operated by the ministry’s Arts and Culture Education programme, had a one-day trial where elementary-school kids boarded to try things out. After five months of adjustments, the buses are scheduled to hit the road this month and continue until December.
The Moving Arts Bus is actually three large buses with state-of-the-art digital facilities, including a big-screen TV with a variety of educational programmes, as well as many organised hands-on activities for children. A lecturer will be aboard to inspire kids to be active in the arts.
Other art-spreading programmes organised by the ministry include hosting visiting performances, exhibitions and education programmes focusing on literature, visual arts, theatre and dance, as well as cultural events where people are given the opportunity to view works of contemporary artists and participate in hands-on arts education.