A series of interactive displays will be featured at the K-COMICS Origin Vietnam exhibition. Photo courtesy of Korean Cultural Centre

HÀ NỘI — A webtoon exhibition will open on June 30 at the South Korean Cultural Centre to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the centre’s establishment.

The K-COMICS Origin Vietnam exhibition will feature three popular Korean webtoons that have gained a strong following in Việt Nam: Solo Leveling, Surviving as Yeonsangun's Chef and Trauma Centre: Golden Hour.

A popular TV series called Bon Appétit, Your Majesty, was adapted from the webtoon Surviving as Yeonsang's Chef and stars Lim Yoona and Lee Chae Min. The series began airing in Việt Nam in August 2025 and quickly topped Netflix Việt Nam's rankings, remaining at No. 1 for four consecutive weeks.

Solo Leveling is one of the world's most successful webtoons, reaching a total of 14.3 billion views globally as of 2024, and has been turned into a highly successful anime series. 

Meanwhile, Trauma Centre: Golden Hour was also adapted into a television series, which topped Netflix’s global chart for non-English-language TV shows.

The remarkable success of these screen adaptations has sparked renewed interest in their original webtoons, attracting growing attention from audiences eager to explore the source material behind the hit productions.

Works across a range of genres, many of which have been adapted into animated series and television dramas, are also featured in the exhibition. Dedicated exhibition zones immerse visitors in the worlds of the webtoons, creating the feeling of stepping directly into the stories themselves.

Visitors can take photos with webtoon characters, create their own comic-style dialogue and participate in a variety of interactive displays inspired by the featured works.

"This exhibition marks the 20th anniversary of the centre in Việt Nam, and introduces some of the most popular Korean webtoons among Vietnamese audiences," said centre director Park Chan A.

"The works on display have all achieved notable success beyond the webtoon format, having been adapted into games, animated series, television dramas and other media. We hope the exhibition will be an opportunity for the Korean and Vietnamese webtoon industries to expand exchanges and strengthen cooperation in the years ahead,” the director added.

The exhibition features large graphic walls, life-sized character models and oversized illustrated panels recreating key scenes from the featured webtoons, allowing visitors to feel as though they have stepped into the stories as the main characters.

Video installations with immersive sound effects, as well as displays of memorabilia from film and television adaptations based on the webtoons, are also included.

Visitors will have the opportunity to meet Hong Bichira, the creator of Trauma Centre: Golden Hour, at the exhibition's opening ceremony. The author will share insights into the world of webtoons and discuss the creative process behind developing a medical-themed webtoon.

A highlight of the event will be a live drawing show, during which Bichira will create illustrations on stage for selected audience members.

Throughout the exhibition, a series of activities will also be on offer in which visitors can design their own characters with stickers, create webtoon dialogue and produce webtoons of their own. 

The programme will also feature AI-assisted webtoon creation sessions, offering beginners an accessible introduction to webtoon storytelling and production.

K-COMICS Origin Vietnam is part of the 2026 Korean Comics and Webtoon Exhibition Project, which is being held at South Korean cultural centres around the world with support from the Korea Creative Content Agency.

Seven different countries and territories will host the exhibition, with Việt Nam set as its first destination. After Việt Nam, it will travel to Los Angeles in the US, Indonesia, Argentina, Mexico, Hong Kong and Poland.

The exhibition runs from July 1 to August 28 at Korean Cultural Centre on 49 Nguyễn Du Street, Hà Nội. — VNS