How many dogs can you spot? 

I don’t see a lot of this photo around the internet maybe because a lot do not walk till the end like we do.

This is probably second favourite spot in Gamcheon culture village. Dog lovers will love these sculptures. I just love the curiosity in these canines portrayed as they peek out over the ledges. (There are cats too nearby, by the way.)

👉 cover every part of GamCheon if you can. There’s lot of hidden gems.

👉 use all these installation as simple games to keep for your children occupied.

👉 a lot of art are actually on the steps and you have to see it from a different perceptive to get what it is!

History of Gamcheon Culture Village

Long ago, Busan was one of the poorest in the country. In 1940, only a few houses dotted the hillside, but that number swelled dramatically at the outset of the Korean War in 1950.

Apparently, North Korean Army pushed back United Nation forces to the “Pusan Perimeter”, a 140 miles (230 kilometers) defensive line around southeastern tip of Korean Peninsula that included Busan.

Being the only area of the peninsula that remained free from fighting, many war refugees moved to this city and, within a year, Busan’s population grew from 880,000 to 1.4 million. 

Later, approximately 4,000 people moved from the port areas near Jagalchi, that had quickly become overcrowded, to nearby Gamcheon, erecting some 800 makeshift homes using scrap iron, wood and rocks.

Those shanty homes were built up into better houses partially thanks to a man named Chol-je Cho. Chol-je Cho founded Taegukdo, a religion that believes that the Taeguk, or yin and yang symbol, represents the true meaning of life and the universe. After the persecution and repression of the Japanese occupation ended, Cho and his followers told the refugees that he would help them if they believed in Taegukdo, and the refugees did. Not only he brought the inhabitants of Gamcheon free food (because they were very poor) but together with the Taegukdo followers, the refugees were able to rebuild their shanty homes into concrete homes which we see today. In 1955 the area became known as the village of Taegukdo when Cho moved the seat of religion there. And that is why Gamcheon is also known as Taegukdo Village.

Although better established by the 1990s, Gamcheon Village remained poorer than the rest of Busan until 2009. In 2009, the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism in South Korea launched a new project under the theme, “Dreaming of Busan Machu Picchu,” for the village. The base of the project transformed the village into a creative community. Reparations were made, artists were hired to paint murals and 10 artworks were installed, some created with the assistance of the residents. The streets were decorated with graffiti and the homes transformed into studios and galleries.

In 2010 the Miro Miro Project added 12 more works, including alley paintings and path markers perfectly suited to the project as miro means “maze” in Korean.

The area is now famous for its multicolored roofs, maze-like streets, and the beautiful murals decorating the walls of each house, making it a vibrating village full of tourist all year round!