ULSAN — Ulsan will turn its downtown into a stage for exhibitions, performances and traditional culture programs over the Chuseok holiday. The city said it will run a concentrated lineup of arts programs for residents, returning visitors and tourists for four days from the 24th through the 27th, and will open parking lots at major facilities free of charge.
Core cultural venues including the city art museum, the arts center and the library will stay open throughout the holiday. The Ulsan Art Museum will keep its galleries open from the 24th through the 27th without a closing day. Visitors can see "The Most Perfect Illusion," an exhibition of world-class hyperrealist works, along with "Julian Opie" and "Fan Letter," a joint exhibition organized with the Asia Culture Center Foundation. Docent tours are offered at 2 p.m. on Thursday and Friday and three times a day on weekends, at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.
The Ulsan Culture and Arts Center will present curated exhibitions in its first through fourth galleries, and at 2 p.m. on the 27th, the final day of the holiday, it will stage a percussion-and-accordion fusion performance featuring janggu and buk drums at its outdoor theater. The Ulsan Library will hold a Chuseok classical music concert and screen films on the 27th. On the 26th and 27th, the outdoor library "Picnic" at Seuldo Art in Dong-gu, a seaside promenade area, will host a meeting with author Kim Choyeop, a reading event and busking performances.
Hands-on programs tied to historical and cultural heritage sites are also planned. From the 24th through the 27th, the Ulsan Museum will run "Chuseok Today, a Bountiful Museum," featuring folk games and fruit harvesting. The Petroglyph Museum will hold "Time Repository: Data From That Day," a special exhibition marking the first anniversary of the site's UNESCO World Heritage listing, along with field study programs. The Daegok Museum will operate as usual with a special exhibition on the Gyodong-ri settlement remains and Chuseok hands-on events.
Major outdoor attractions and sports facilities will also welcome visitors. The Daewangam Park suspension bridge and the Jangsaengpo Whale Culture Special District will operate normally except on the 25th, the day of Chuseok. Jangsaengpo will host programs on setting an ancestral memorial table and traditional folk games. Ulsan Grand Park will close only on the 25th and will run a folk games area at its main gate plaza during the holiday, with yutnori, tuho and jegichagi. Sports facilities including the main stadium, Dongcheon Gymnasium, the Munsu futsal fields and the municipal Munsu archery hall will operate without closures.
The city is also rolling out convenience measures for visitors. From the 24th through the 27th, parking lots at the main stadium and Ulsan Sports Park will be fully open free of charge. The city will keep eight tourist information centers and Ulsan tourism taxis in normal operation and flexibly deploy culture and tourism guides at key locations to reduce inconvenience for visitors.
An Ulsan city official said the city had prepared a full range of cultural, tourism and sports facilities so that residents and returning visitors could spend a safe and abundant holiday in Ulsan, adding that it hoped people would enjoy a special and warm holiday across the city.
