100 Years of Korean Comics

Commemorating the centennial of Korean comic books, or manhwa, South Korea's national art museum will host a massive exhibition featuring some 1,500 pieces by 250 artists beginning this week, according to Yonhap News Agency.

The exhibition, "100 Years of Korean Comics," is the largest event to portray Korean manhwa, displaying rare copies of comic books published in the 1930s and 1940s as well as dozens of manhwa-inspired artworks by contemporary artists, the National Museum of Contemporary Art said in a press release.

Although manhwa ― dubbed "graphic novels" in the West to distinguish from shorter comics ― has never been considered highbrow or educational, it has evolved into a unique literary genre of its own defined by an unusual flair and narrative.