National Museum of Copyright opens in Jinju

The National Copyright Museum has opened in Jinju, aiming to educate young Koreans about copyright and its importance in protecting creators' rights.

Nation Copyright Museum [MINISTRY OF CULTURE, SPORTS AND TOURISM]

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Copyright Commission jointly opened the National Copyright Museum on Wednesday in Jinju, South Gyeongsang, the culture ministry announced Wednesday.

The new state-run museum has been established in hopes of “providing young Koreans with various hands-on experiences that would allow them to easily approach things to know about copyright.”

“Protecting the rights of the creators is the top prerequisite for the development of culture, arts and content industries,” said Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Yu In-chon during the opening ceremony at the museum on Wednesday.

Amazon, a dance crew under 1Million Dance Studio performed during the opening ceremony. To raise awareness that choreography, an important element behind K-pop, is also a form of art that needs to be protected under the copyright, 1Million Dance Studio donated three pieces of choreography it owns to the museum. They are the works of choreographer Back Kooyoung, who's choreographed for K-pop boy bands like EXO and The Boyz, and will be used in an experiential component of the exhibition that will allow visitors to learn about choreography copyright law.

On the first floor of the museum, visitors can experience the process of becoming a creator and learn about what kind of copyright issues they may encounter, emphasizing that copyright is important for artists to be aware of, the culture ministry said. The section also showcases the impact of copyright on various creative fields including music, video-making, photography, computer science and architecture.

The second floor will act as an education center, which will offer various programs related to the downstairs exhibitions.

The Copyright Museum has secured 415 pieces of copyright-related historical and archival materials, including Yoo Gil-joon’s “Seoyugyeonmun” (1895), the first Korean document to mention copyright, and a photographic edition of the Gutenberg Bible (1961).

“We will do our best to ensure that the copyright industry continues to expand and develop in line with the new environment,” Yu said.

BY LEE CHAE-MIN [lee.chaemin1@joongang.co.kr]