Jeonju Dongmun Arts Street: Traces of Old Downtown Art Next to the Hanok Village
Jeonju Dongmun Arts Street is an always-open street located a five-minute walk from Jeonju Hanok Village. Explore how Dongmun Street, once a cultural and artistic hub in the 1970s and 1980s, declined and was revitalized into an arts space, along with currently available operating and parking information.
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A Street 5 Minutes from the Hanok Village, Leading to 38 Hyeonmu 2-gil
Jeonju Dongmun Art Street is an old downtown street at 38 Hyeonmu 2-gil, Wansan-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province. It is a five-minute walk from Jeonju Hanok Village, making it easy to connect on foot before or after visiting the village. Records indicate that the street entrance was located between the former Jeonbuk Bank headquarters and Nammunhwabang, and a landmark was installed at the entrance to Dongmun Intersection.
Foreign visitors coming for the first time should follow the street signs, shops, and workspaces rather than look for a single ticket office in a particular building. Dongmun Art Street itself is Information as open at all times and year-round, but this does not mean that every individual shop or exhibition space is open. No confirmed information is available on the overall time needed to visit the street or the individual operating hours of the Creative Support Center and Jeonju Citizens' Playground currently in operation.
From a Cultural and Artistic Hub in the 1970s–1980s to a Street of Vacant Shops
Dongmun Street was the center of Jeonju's cultural and artistic life in the 1970s and 1980s, before downtown district reorganization began in earnest. Hongji Seorim and used-book stores were introduced as the birthplace of young people's literature, while rooftop rooms in the buildings were mentioned as artists' studios. There was also a music listening room that played classical music, serving as a dating spot for young men and women at the time.
However, the commercial district weakened in the 2000s. Records showing that 61 of the 244 shops were vacant demonstrate that today's art-street landscape was not originally an art space, but rather the result of culturally reusing a declining commercial district. Visitors should therefore understand it as an old downtown area where aging shops and new artistic activities are intermingled, rather than as a neatly organized theme park.
2006 and 2012: The Turning Points That Transformed Dongmun Street into an Art Street
The change began when the area was selected in January 2006 for the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's Cultural Improvement of Living Spaces Project. Following the 2012 art-street development project, Dongmun Street was designated as “Dongmun Art Street.” The development project took place over five years, from 2012 to 2016, with a total project budget recorded as 2,600 million won, or 2.6 billion won.
The project area covered Dongmun Street from the northern wall of Gyeonggijeon to the National Intangible Heritage Center. The project included operating hub spaces, creating streetscapes, and running cultural and artistic planning programs. It also promoted two citizen rest areas, street guidance signs, and a storytelling competition for the art road. This scope explains that Dongmun Art Street was not a single exhibition hall, but a project that transformed the urban route between Gyeonggijeon and the National Intangible Heritage Center into a cultural space.
Activities at Jeonju Citizens' Playground and the Creative Support Center
The development project created and operated two cultural and artistic hub spaces, including Jeonju Citizens' Playground and the Creative Support Center. As of May 2014, there were 310 registered members, counting individuals and organizations together, with 2,554 cumulative rentals and 19,827 users. These figures show the scale of the project, which enabled residents and artists to actually rent and use the spaces.
Creative Support Center No. 1 was introduced as an information platform for Dongmun's cultural and artistic scene and a space supporting exhibitions by young artists. Records also state that a piano was placed at the entrance for citizens to play 24 hours a day. However, no recent confirmed information is available on whether visitors can currently use this piano or the Creative Support Center, or whether English guidance or an audio guide is provided. When entering an indoor space, it is safest to first confirm that it is open for business.
“Saturday Water Splash (樂)” and the Street Festival Format It Left Behind in 2014
The 2014 festival, hosted by Jeonju City and organized by the Jeonju Dongmun Art Street Promotion Group, was held around Dongmun Street under the theme “Saturday Water Splash (樂).” It ran for three sessions, every Saturday from August 9 to August 23, 2014, from 19:00 to 21:00. The program included a retro-costume street parade, DJ and hip-hop performances, and audience-participation events.
The event also included water-gun games, a water-splash photo zone, 1970s–1980s street performances, a nostalgia cart selling old-fashioned snacks, and school-uniform experiences. A format combining old shops with artistic programs was also confirmed through street performances featuring long-established stores, an art market, and art activities. Because this schedule comes from records of a 2014 event, it should not be understood as an event that is repeated every year, and no current event schedule has been separately confirmed.
“Our Shop Art Archive,” Which Turned Vacant Shops into Galleries
The 2021 project “Our Shop Art Archive” used old downtown shops around Dongmun Art Street and Dongbu Market. Operating shops and vacant storefronts were used as art archives, galleries, and art-selling spaces. Ten artists participated, displaying works in ten shops.
The project’s stated operating hours were 11:00 to 17:00, and the contact telephone number was 063-287-1141. However, these hours applied to the 2021 event and cannot be applied as the current operating hours for Dongmun Art Street as a whole. Visitors should expect to walk through the alleys, which are open at all times, while exhibition and sales spaces vary according to whether each shop is open.
What to Know About Arriving by Car and Restrictions Before Visiting
No parking lot directly on the street has been confirmed. If traveling by car, visitors can use Jeonju Hanok Village Public Parking Lots 1 and 2 nearby. The stated fees are 1,200 won for the first 30 minutes, 400 won for each additional 10 minutes, and a daily maximum of 12,000 won. After parking, the practical option is to walk from the Hanok Village side to Dongmun Art Street.
No admission fee for the street itself has been confirmed, and it is not Information as a tourist facility with a separate ticket office. No confirmed information is available on public transportation bus routes, stops, or station exits; wheelchair and stroller accessibility; photography restrictions; cash-only payment; or the availability of English guidance and audio guides. For inquiries, the official Jeonju City website is https://www.jeonju.go.kr/, and the contact number listed for Dongmun Art Street is 063-281-2532.
The Most Practical Order for Walking Through Jeonju Dongmun Art Street
Visitors coming for the first time can start at Jeonju Hanok Village, find the entrance to Dongmun Art Street five minutes away on foot, and begin walking through the section Information as lying between the former Jeonbuk Bank headquarters and Nammunhwabang. They can then check the landmark and street signs at the entrance to Dongmun Intersection, entering only shops that are open and exhibition spaces that are publicly accessible. Since the development-project area extended from the northern wall of Gyeonggijeon to the National Intangible Heritage Center, the movement through the street itself is more central than a visit ending inside one building.
The advantage of this place is that it is open at all times and year-round, but it may not suit people who want to see a specific exhibition without fail, since the current operating hours and event schedules of individual spaces have not been confirmed. Conversely, it is a suitable place for visitors who want to step away from Jeonju Hanok Village's tourist route and see old bookstores, used-book shops, and commercial buildings alongside traces of artistic revitalization while walking through Dongmun Street's transformation.
Before You Go
- Address
- 38 Hyeonmu 2-gil, Wansan-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province
- Hours
- Open at all times
- Closed
- Open year-round
- Admission
- No admission fee for the street itself confirmed
- Phone
- Dongmun Art Street inquiries: 063-281-2532
- Official site
- https://www.jeonju.go.kr/
- Transport
- Five-minute walk from Jeonju Hanok Village
- Parking
- No parking lot directly on the street has been confirmed. Nearby Jeonju Hanok Village Public Parking Lots 1 and 2 are available. The listed fees are 1,200 won for the first 30 minutes, 400 won per additional 10 minutes, and a daily maximum of 12,000 won.
The information above is based on the time of writing. Check the official information again before visiting.
Places
Nearby Attractions 3
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1
Jeonju Hanok VillageWalk through traditional hanok alleys and explore local culture and artisan workshops. -
2
Gyeonggijeon ShrineSee the portrait of King Taejo, Yi Seong-gye, and relics of the Joseon royal family. -
3
Korea Traditional Culture CenterEnjoy traditional culture exhibitions, performances, and hands-on programs.
Food & Dining 3
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4
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5
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6
SinbaengiEnjoy kongnamul-gukbap (bean sprout soup with rice) and bibimbap in a traditional Korean hanok.
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