THE OPEN-AIR MUSEUMS: FROM MEDIATION OF NATIONAL IDENTITY TO ENTERTAINMENT. NATIONAL VILLAGE MUSEUM IN ROMANIA AND KOREAN FOLK VILLAGE IN SOUTH KOREA
THE OPEN-AIR MUSEUMS: FROM MEDIATION OF NATIONAL IDENTITY TO ENTERTAINMENT. NATIONAL VILLAGE MUSEUM IN ROMANIA AND KOREAN FOLK VILLAGE IN SOUTH KOREA

Summary/Abstract: This article discusses the new social, cultural and economic role that open-air museums play, in a post-nationalist period, taking into consideration the Korean Folk Village in Seoul, South Korea and the National Village Museum ‘Dimitrie Gusti’ in Bucharest, Romania. The first approach is to define the role that the two open-air museums played historically, as well as the changes they undergo in recent years. In the context of globalization, culture is redefined in its relationship to economic growth and tourism contribution and the need for museums whose marketing turns the attention towards the visitor. Museums undergo a democratisation process, in the sense that collections became accessible and made interesting for the general public. Although in recent years in Romania it is considered that there is a lack of funding and legislation regarding cultural patrimony, the Village Museum in Bucharest is adapting to the latest evolutions in the patrimonial and cultural sector, remaining one of the most important cultural institutions in Romania. The Korean Folk Village was put in connection with the revival of the Korean economy, a policy aiming to preserve Korean culture by supporting the country’s cultural heritage in the process of building a modern nation-state (Lee, 2011). While the South Korean Folk Village is oriented towards tourism attraction, re-enactment of the past and entertainment, the National Village Museum ‘Dimitrie Gusti’ in Bucharest is rather oriented towards its pedagogical role, its dialogue with the public translating in event organisation.

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