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Busan Women’s Cultural Center to Host “Ipchun, Writing Happiness” Event: Share Family Wishes for the New Season

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□ Busan Metropolitan City’s Busan Women’s Cultural Center announced that, to mark Ipchun (literally means “onset of spring”)—the seasonal division that signals the beginning of spring—it will hold an experience-and-sharing event where citizens can write and receive Ipchun calligraphy strips, wishing for safety and good fortune throughout the year.

□ As part of the Happy Family Support Program, the Ipchun calligraphy strip writing event will be operated today (the 2nd) from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in the first-floor lobby of the center.
○ At the event, participants will take part in a hands-on activity in which they write Ipchun calligraphy strips themselves under the guidance of calligrapher Han Hyeon-suk. Participants will then receive their completed strips to take home, so they can wish for good fortune and happiness for their families throughout the year.
○ Any Busan citizen may participate, and no advance application is required; participation is available through on-site registration.

□ Ipchun calligraphy strips originated from a long-standing traditional custom of writing phrases that pray for good fortune and peace at Ipchun and attaching them to a home’s main gate or pillars, and they remain a distinctive part of Korea’s cultural heritage passed down over many generations.
○ Representative phrases include “Great luck at the beginning of spring; abundant blessings as the sun rises” (立春大吉 建陽多慶) and “The nation prospers and the people live in peace; every household has enough and people thrive” (國泰民安 家給人足). It is said to be best to post them at the time of Ipchun, and some people post them late at night as well.

□ Meanwhile, the Busan Women’s Cultural Center opened in 1992 to expand women’s participation in society and operates more than 360 courses each year in areas such as traditional culture, modern life, and languages.
○ The center also operates a Metropolitan Women’s Re-employment Support Center, providing services such as support for women with career interruptions, vocational education and training, and employment assistance—serving as a cultural space for citizens as well as a hub for women’s employment.

□ Lee Yeon-ak, Director of the Busan Women’s Cultural Center, said, “As Ipchun marks the start of a new spring, I hope this will be a meaningful time for families to share their wishes together.” Lee added, “I also hope that experiencing traditional culture will naturally become an opportunity to deepen affection among family members.”