만화·독립출판까지 껴안은 ‘군산북페어’ 29일 개막

The “Gunsan Book Fair 2026” will open its doors on the 29th in Gunsan. The city announced on the 26th that the two-day event will take place at the Gunsan Community Center and Malarji Story Hall. The term ‘Malarji’ refers to Jeolla Province dialect, meaning a temporary settlement during the 6·25 War, where evacuees from Insan-dong created a village and named it after themselves.

This year’s Book Fair will be the largest ever, featuring 204 teams including domestic and international creators, independent publishers, neighborhood bookstores, and more. Beyond book sales, the fair will feature Zine (small-scale independent publications) exhibitions, book design, the Asian Publishing Network, and much more.

Author Park Cheonho of ‘Concrete Utopia’ will discuss Gunsan’s modern history and collective memory in his keynote ‘Beyond the Periphery of Concrete Utopia – The Time of Gunsan’. Writers Kim Geumhee and performer Jo Yeojin will present a special performance on ‘Reading the Rhythm of Life – The Sentences We Share’. Foreign publishing culture and bookstores will also be showcased.

International art book distributor Julii Onishii will introduce art book distribution in East Asia, while Japanese publisher Genji Yamashita will share his experience running Japanese bookstores.

Attendees can choose their own texts from a ‘Text Buffet’ offering 294 pieces of content across 10 categories, allowing them to collect up to 10 different types per person. A ‘HELLO, ZINE’ showcase will introduce zine culture from Japan, Indonesia, and Korea. Graphic designer Oh Hyejin’s ‘Dummy Book’ exhibition will also be featured.

A new program for independent manga creators will launch at the ‘Manga Store’ in Malarji Story Hall, featuring 20 domestic and one Taiwanese team showcasing independent manga, graphic novels, and illustrated books. Local publishing and reading cultures will also be highlighted at the ‘Gunsan Village’ event.

In addition, a ‘Relay Talk’ titled ‘Book Fair, Hello!’ will allow participants to discuss the role and direction of Book Fairs. A pre-conference forum focused on architectural publishing will also take place. The Gunsan City officials expressed their hope that the event will provide a space for deep communication between creators and readers, and that it will be an opportunity to discover one’s unique tastes and new stories through books.