Culture Ministry awards recognize efforts to raise awareness about gender equality

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Wednesday recognized cultural figures, groups and content that helped raise awareness about gender equality in South Korean society.

Artist Jung Jung-yeob was honored for her works spotlighting the lives and labor of Korean women, which had long been overlooked in the arts. She is best known for her painting “The First Supper,” a response to Leonardo da Vinci’s 1490s painting “The Last Supper.” In her painting, the men in Leonardo’s picture have been replaced with women celebrated for their contributions to gender equality.

The Naver webtoon series “Jeong-nyeon,” which has been serialized every Tuesday since April 2019, won in the content category. The webtoons are written by Seo Ireh and drawn by Namon.

The story is set in 1956 in Mokpo, South Jeolla Province, and features female protagonist Jeong-nyeon, a talented singer who has no money and little formal education. Jeong-nyeon’s dream is to join a women’s traditional theater company.

We Meet Up Sport was selected as the group that supported gender equality the most this year. The group operates a platform that connects ordinary people with retired female athletes and organizes classes in various sports.

The winners received commendations from the minister of culture, sports and tourism at the award ceremony at the Korea Press Foundation in Seoul on Thursday.

Established in 2008, the awards are hosted by the Women & Culture in Network, managed by Women News and sponsored by the Culture Ministry. Nominees are selected among candidates recommended by local governments, culture-related entities, public institutions and ordinary citizens. The winners are picked by experts in different cultural fields, according to the Culture Ministry.

By Song Seung-hyun (ssh@heraldcorp.com)