Culture ministry to open Hintzpeter exhibition in Gwangju on Nov. 5

South Korea's culture ministry said Tuesday it will open a special exhibition in Gwangju on Nov. 5 commemorating Jürgen Hinzpeter, the German journalist who brought the truth of the 1980 Gwangju Uprising to the world, marking the 10th anniversary of his death.

The exhibition, titled “The Record Continues — The Blue-Eyed Witness, the Legacy Hinzpeter Left Behind,” runs through March 28, 2027, at the old South Jeolla Provincial Government building and is jointly organized by the ministry's Old South Jeolla Provincial Government Restoration Team and the May 18 Memorial Foundation. Hinzpeter, who lived from 1937 to 2016, is the real-life model for the foreign correspondent depicted in the film “A Taxi Driver.”

The show draws on his photographs, footage and personal belongings. Its first section, “Reviving May,” deals with his entry into the city despite martial law control and the images he shot there, displayed alongside his reporting album, travel expense settlements and a map that reconstructs the route he took. A second section, “Watching the World,” covers his fieldwork from Gwangju to other parts of the globe, recreating his living space and showing his passport, notebooks, typewriter, reporting tapes and collected books. The final section, “Connecting May,” examines his journalistic legacy through plaques, mementos and material related to the Hinzpeter International Journalism Award.

On the evening of Nov. 5, the May 18 Memorial Foundation will hold the 2026 Hinzpeter International Journalism Award ceremony in the building's conference room.

Separately, an academic forum titled “Citizens' Participation, Democracy That Continues” will be held at 2 p.m. on Nov. 5 at Jeonil Building 245 in the Dong-gu district of Gwangju. Choi Jeong-ki, director of the May 18 International Research Institute, and Lee Young-bae of Gukyeong National University will deliver the keynote addresses, followed by topic presentations and a general discussion.

“This special exhibition and academic forum will serve as an occasion to reflect on the meaning of the records that made the truth of the May 18 Democratization Movement known to the world and to shed new light on the value of democracy that citizens have upheld,” a policy official with the restoration team said.