A Chinese cultural festival has been under way in South Korea to celebrate the upcoming Lunar New Year, organizers said Tuesday.

The annual festival kicked off in Seoul on Friday with an exhibition showcasing sculptures, craftwork and other artwork from the central Chinese province of Hubei.

It will run through Feb. 1 mostly in Seoul but also in the central city of Daegu.

"This event, which is being hosted as we see the old year out and the new year in, will further strengthen our two countries'

friendly ties," Hao Xiaofei, minister of the Chinese Embassy in Seoul, said in her congratulatory remarks at a press conference held to promote the festival.

Citing active exchanges at the political, cultural and economic levels last year, she said bilateral ties have entered "the best period since the establishment of diplomatic ties" in 1992.

Since 2010, China has held cultural festivals celebrating the Lunar New Year in hundreds of cities around the world. Last year, more than 800 events took place in some 320 cities in 118 countries, according to the China Cultural Center in Seoul.

The Lunar New Year is one of the biggest holidays in both China and South Korea and falls on Feb. 8 this year.

The festival will include exhibitions of artwork, performances of folk dances, concerts and a demonstration of traditional Chinese tea drinking before ending with a closing ceremony featuring Chinese opera and a fashion show. (Yonhap)