Heyri Art Valley, Artists' village in Paju, South Korea
Heyri Art Valley is an artists' village in Paju, a city in northern South Korea close to the border with North Korea. The village brings together galleries, museums, studios, cafes, and homes spread across a hilly landscape with green spaces.
The village was founded in 1998 by a group of artists who wanted to build a place where creative work and community life could go together. From that small beginning, it grew into one of the most recognized art communities in Korea.
The name "Heyri" comes from an old Korean folk song from the Paju region. Today, the place is shaped by galleries, open studios, and small cafes where visitors can speak directly with the artists at work.
Heyri Art Valley is close to Seoul and can be reached by bus or car in about an hour from the city center. It is worth arriving before midday, as the streets get busier in the early afternoon.
The White Block Art Center runs a residency program that lets artists from around the world live and work in the village for up to a year and a half. From its rooftop, you can look out over the reed park that borders part of the site.
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