In front of exit 4 of Chungmuro Station in Jung District, Seoul, on Nov. 17. When we went to the indoor exhibition hall introduced on a sign reading "Pildong Culture Street Art-Tong," cat food left by a cat mom had been placed there. The outdoor gallery's windows were fogged up, making it hard to see the works.
Murals continued along the alley, but many were cracked or had paint peeling off. During about an hour of looking around the area, no tourists were seen.
A person surnamed Kim (56), who works nearby, said, "The paintings were made 10 years ago and were repaired once 3–4 years ago, but it seems they have not been maintained since," adding, "If they are going to be left like this, I would rather they be cleared out."
Pildong Culture and Arts Street (Art-Tong) in Jung District, Seoul, has been left unattended more than 10 years after it was created because there is no managing entity. Jung District is distancing itself, saying it was a private-led project, and the cultural foundation that served as the private operator has halted activities.
Art-Tong took its first step in 2013 with the goal of turning idle spaces around Pildong 24th Street and Namsan Hanok Village into an arts street where murals, installation art, and media art would be exhibited. A person identified as A, who ran an advertising company in Jung District, led the project and, over about three years, created exhibition spaces such as mural works, a street museum, and an open museum. In 2016, that person established the foundation Meongseok, donated all the museums to the foundation, and thereafter Meongseok took charge of holding the Art-Tong festival and planning exhibition programs.
However, local residents said with one voice that Art-Tong is not being properly maintained. A person surnamed Jang (78) said, "At first artists would come by from time to time, but now they've all disappeared," adding, "They said it would be managed privately, but it remains like an abandoned space kept up nominally by one person, which is a shame." A person surnamed Lee (32) also said, "I didn't even know this was a cultural and arts street," and "I'm surprised to learn that what looked like an eyesore was actually an exhibition piece."
On the Jung District website's civil complaints board, posts say, "They stirred up the neighborhood saying they would make Art-Tong, but now only unpleasant traces remain," and, "Containers that are not being maintained should rather be removed," reflecting ongoing resident discontent.
Jung District's position is that because Art-Tong was a private-led project, Meongseok should be responsible for operation and management. A Jung District official said, "It started at the request of residents who were interested in the field and there was simple interaction with the district office, but the district has never directly pursued the project."
That said, in 2016 Jung District co-hosted the First Art-Tong Alley Festival with Meongseok. The festival revenue raised at the time (20,000 won on weekdays, 30,000 won on Saturdays) was used through Meongseok as sponsorship funds for the Street Museum. The Art-Tong festival was held every year through the fifth edition in 2019, and Jung District continued sponsorship during that period. In addition, in 2017 and 2018, 2.5 million won and 3.7 million won, respectively, were provided to Meongseok through the integrated village community public contest project and the resident public contest project.
In response, Jung District said, "The festival is a community-level event, so the district office participated, but it should be seen as separate from the street creation project," and, "The public contest projects were also temporary, so it is hard to say that the cultural foundation Meongseok was continuously supported."
Contrary to Jung District's explanation that Meongseok would improve the works and other aspects over time, Meongseok's activities are effectively halted. The Facebook and Instagram accounts under Art-Tong's name operated by Meongseok have not been updated since 2023, and the official website is inaccessible. The Art-Tong festival was also suspended from 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19 and has not resumed.
A Jung District official said, "It is already a concluded private project, so there is no responsible department," adding, "There has also been no discussion yet on how to handle the currently neglected facilities."