Chuseok Family Festival

Celebrate Chuseok, Korea’s beloved harvest festival, with the museum! Learn about both past and current traditions of one of the biggest holidays in Korea. Enjoy delicious food, a curated art and vendor market, family activities, and dynamic performances, including a special performance by Insun Park & Generals!

This year’s festival highlights the fascinating world of Korea’s traditional masks (Tal 탈). Learn about the unique stories and characters represented by a variety of masks and explore a collection of mask displays. Decorate your own colorful hanji (traditional Korean paper) mask, try on different masks, and capture memories in the photo booth. Enjoy special mask-themed giveaways while experiencing one of Korea’s most distinctive cultural traditions. Plus, experience a groundbreaking fusion of rock, Korean traditional music, and mask dance rhythms with Insun Park & Generals, masters of the Gangnyeong Mask Dance!

Register in advance to make sure you get the best experience. Some activities have a limited capacity, with entry on a first-come, first-served basis.

Family Fun
11 a.m.–1 p.m.

• Korean Folk & Fairy Tales Story Time
  West Building, Courtyard
• Scavenger Hunt
  West Building, Galleries 12 (The Peacock Room) and 14
• Peacock Room Pattern Puzzles
  West Building, Gallery 12
• Fun with Objects from Our Hands-On Collection
  West Building, outside Galleries 14–16

Displays presented by the Korean Cultural Center Washington, D.C.
11 a.m.–4 p.m.

• Life-Size Charye Ancestral Rites Table
  West Building, North Corridor
• Traditional Mask Display, Try-On, and Photo Booth with support from the Bongsan Mask Dance-Drama Preservation Society
  East Building, Gallery 27

Crafts and Activities presented by the Korean Cultural Center Washington, D.C.
11 a.m.–4 p.m.

• Hanji Mask Decorating
  West Building, South Corridor
• Minhwa Fan-Making and Coloring
  West Building, South Corridor

Music and Performances copresented by the Korean Cultural Center Washington, D.C.

• K-pop DJ Set by DJ EPX
  11 a.m.–2 p.m.
  West Building, Plaza
• Korean Performing Arts Institute of Chicago (KPAC)
  Traditional Korean Percussion Performance
  11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.
  West Building, Plaza
• Gumwoo Washington Gayageum Ensemble
  Traditional Korean String Performance
  12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
  West Building, Plaza
• Insun Park & Generals
  Korean Folk Rock Meets Mask Dance
  3 p.m.
  West Building, Plaza

Food and Art Market
11 a.m.–4 p.m.
West Building, Plaza

SAMASAMA Art and Vendor Market featuring:

• AJM Kimchi (Kimchi)
• Brian Oh (Photo Prints)
• Chaotic Neutral (Jewelry & Accessories)
• yoojiflows (Tarot/Korean Oracle Readings & Art)

Food available for purchase from:

• AmLux Cafe
• bit bakery
• Noonchi by Bun’d Up

Tours and Talks

• Conservation Cart Talk | Early Printing in Korea
  1–2 p.m.
  West Building, North Corridor
• Spotlight Talks
  2–3 p.m. and 3–4 p.m.
  West Building, Gallery 12 (The Peacock Room) and Gallery 14 (Rediscovering Korea's Past)

This event is copresented by the Korean Cultural Center Washington, D.C. Generous support is provided by the National Museum of Korea.
Image credit: National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Photo by Sonya Pencheva