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Agrigento and Gyeongju, a cultural bridge between Sicily and Korea

Agrigento and Gyeongju, a cultural bridge between Sicily and Korea

Towards the twinning between Agrigento and Gyeongju. A delegation led by the mayor of the important city of South Korea is expected in Agrigento on Monday. As part of the collateral activities to Agrigento Italian Capital of Culture 2025, in Agrigento, on Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 June, a delegation from Gyeongju is expected, one of the most popular tourist destinations in South Korea, also known as the “museum without walls” for its numerous UNESCO sites, such as the Bulguksa Temple and the Seokguram Cave.

From October 31 to November 1, 2025, Gyeongju will host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 2025, the annual summit that brings together leaders of the 21 economies of the Asia-Pacific region to discuss and promote economic cooperation, trade, and sustainable development in the region. The choice of Gyeongju as the venue for the APEC 2025 summit reflects the desire to combine innovation and tradition, offering participants a setting rich in history and culture.

The relationship between Agrigento and South Korea was born in January 2024, on the occasion of the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Italy, where the DMO - Valle dei Templi Tourist District, accredited by the Ministry of Tourism, ENIT and the Sicilian Region, welcomed to Agrigento (already the next city designated as Italian Capital of Culture), as part of the Twinning for Cultural Heritage Sicily-Korea 2024, a delegation of cultural operators and journalists from South Korea, led by Youn Jae-won, President of the Seokju Cultural Foundation. An initiative, the first stage of a project, which took place during 2024 and 2025 in order to promote Italian models of protection, conservation and enhancement of cultural heritage in South Korea, helping to liven up the long-running cultural debate between the two countries and, at the same time, import new and international cultural experiences to Agrigento capable of broadening the prospects of the territory also on a social and economic level.

The joint Korea-Italy symposium took place in January 2024 at the Pietro Griffo Archaeological Museum in Agrigento, in the Telamone room that inspired the Pagoda room of the Seoul museum. The next phase of the project saw a series of remote meetings with the participation of the Order of Architects of Agrigento. The Sicilian experience in Korea was also reported by the Korean national press and was the subject of a photographic exhibition held in one of the most iconic locations in Seoul. Then, in collaboration with the Italian embassy in Korea led by Her Excellency Emilia Gatto, Ambassador of Italy to Seoul, the dialogue with the city of Gyeongju was activated. Last March, the mayor of Agrigento, Francesco Miccichè, on the occasion of the year of Agrigento as Italian Capital of Culture, invited the mayor of the city of Gyeongju, Joo Nak-Young. Among the delegates, together with the mayor of the Korean city, there will be Lim Hwal, Vice President of the Gyeongju City Council, Kim Sang Yong, President of the Gyeongju Section of the Korea Federation of Arts and Cultural Organizations; Lim Young Kyun, Photographer.

The delegation will be welcomed by the mayor Francesco Miccichè, by the Prefect of Agrigento, His Excellency Salvatore Caccamo, by the President of the Municipal Council of Agrigento, Giovanni Civiltà, and by the Honorary Consul of South Korea in Sicily, Antonio Di Fresco, on Monday 16th at 5pm at the Prefecture of Agrigento, and at 6:30pm in the foyer of the Teatro Pirandello there will be the inauguration of a preview and a press conference of the photographic exhibition “Destiny” by photographer Lim Young Kyun, curated by Gisella Mammano, with the non-onerous patronage of the Municipality of Agrigento, which will take place next September in the Fabbriche Chiaramontane as part of Agrigento Italian Capital of Culture.

The aim of the author of the exhibition, through his photographs, is precisely to enhance and highlight the beauty of the ordinariness of everyday life in its full essence.

The press conference will be attended by the mayor of Agrigento, Francesco Miccichè, the President of the Free Consortium of Agrigento, Giuseppe Pendolino, the General Director of the Teatro Pirandello of Agrigento, Salvo Prestia, the mayor of Gyeongju, Joo Nak-Young, the Vice President of the Municipal Council of Gyeongju, Lim Hwal, the Administrator of the DMO – Valle dei Templi Tourist District, the Director of the Fabbriche Chiaramontane of Agrigento, Professor Beniamino Biondi and Lim Young Kyun, photographer and author of the photographic exhibition. During the day of Tuesday 17, the delegation will visit the city of Agrigento and the Valley of the Temples. An institutional meeting with the President of the Free Consortium of Agrigento, Giuseppe Pendolino, is also planned. The twinning between Agrigento and Gyeongju is strategically based on a broader process of international cooperation that sees Italy as a protagonist at a global level.

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