Asia Culture Center국립아시아문화전당

At a glance

The Asia Culture Center (ACC) opened in November 2015 as a national institution for exchange, research and new work across Asian arts, conceived to carry the human-rights and peace legacy of the May 18 Democratic Uprising into art. It includes the restored former South Jeolla Provincial Office, the focal point of the 1980 uprising. Five sections — Democracy & Peace Exchange, Archive & Research, Creation, Theater and Children — run exhibitions, performances and programs all year, while the outdoor plazas and the 'Forest of Light' garden make a calm spot in the middle of the city. Its exhibition space also stood in for a Los Angeles hospital lobby in the film Exhuma.

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Asia Culture Center · 1 tours & tickets

1. KlookGwangju Soul Walk: 5·18 history and old townA 6.5-hour guided walk that starts at 5·18 Democracy Square, passes the May 18 Archives and ends at the Asia Culture Center.Book

Places to stay nearby

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Map

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Tips

• 01
  5·18 Democracy Square, with the fountain and clock tower from 1980, is right in front of the center.
• 02
  Archive & Research and Creation stay open until 20:00 on Wednesdays and Saturdays, handy for an evening visit.

Nearby

5·18 Democracy SquareThe fountain square in front of the old South Jeolla Provincial Office, the heart of Gwangju's May 1980 democratic uprising.Yangnim-dong Penguin VillageA Gwangju lane village where residents hung old clocks, pots and frames on the walls, now home to craft studios in a 1970s–80s streetscape.Soswaewon GardenA 16th-century scholar's garden in Damyang, laid out along a stream with pavilions, bamboo and stone walls, and still kept by the founder's descendants.Muwol VillageA quiet farming village in Damyang with stone-wall lanes, a pine-wood trail, hanok stays and hands-on country experiences.