Banwol Island, which is off the southwestern coast of South Korea, painted the whole town purple after drawing inspiration from the native bellflowers called campanula. Known as “the purple island”, the island is about a six-hour drive from Seoul and it’s remote with about 400 buildings and roofs, telephone boxes, and a large bridge, all painted purple.
The project came about in 2015 when the South Jeolla Province wanted to “create attractive island destinations”, according to a CNN report. The island is linked to its neighboring Bakji Island, which is also painted purple, via a large purple bridge. Altogether, the islands have a combined population of only 150 people, with most of them working in farming.
The government planted 30,000 New England asters and 230,00 square feet of lavender fields, to add to the overall purple color of the island. To boost tourism, a restaurant was added on both islands and a cafe, hotel, and bike rentals were added to Banwol Island.
While the idea of painting cities in colorful shades isn’t a new idea, as Morocco’s Chefchaouen, India’s Jodhpur, and Spain’s Júzcar are blue and Mexico’s Izamal is yellow, we’re loving the purple shade of Banwol Island.
