Recently, foreigners' controversy over Jennie's (Blackpink) outfit for a wedding in Korea has become a hot topic of discussion.
There have been mixed opinions among international and Korean netizens, surrounding whether Jennie wearing a simple black and white outfit to the wedding was appropriate or not.
Many posts from foreigners expressed their shock at what guests wore to weddings in Korea. Most people wore black, or dressed like office workers, making the atmosphere a bit gloomy.
But most Koreans argue that this is a cultural difference and Jennie's dress is appropriate for Korean wedding culture.
In Korea, weddings usually do not have specific dress codes. Guests will wear simple, mostly dark, soft clothes to show respect for the bride and groom, especially to avoid standing out more than the bride.
Jennie’s wedding was also attended by many celebrities such as Song Hye Kyo, Byeon Woo Seok, Kim Go Eun… and they all dressed simply. A panoramic photo shows that most of the guests chose black and dark clothes.
Or recently, comedian Jo Se Ho's wedding gathered dozens of celebrities, including G-Dragon, Taeyang, Lee Soo Hyuk, Yoo Jae Suk, Lee Dong Wook, Kim Heechul, Lee Si Young... They appeared with an elegant and solemn image.
According to Kookmin Ilbo, unlike weddings abroad that are mainly attended by family or acquaintances, in Korea, guests also include a majority of related parties such as bosses, colleagues, and business partners. As some commentators describe, attending a wedding in Korea is like a "formal obligation", so the solemn atmosphere at the wedding is understandable.
On the contrary, there are opinions that Korea is too fond of dark-colored clothes, making the wedding atmosphere lack brilliance and freshness.
At Song Hye Kyo and Song Joong Ki's wedding in 2017, Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi caused controversy for wearing a red carpet-like outfit. In the photo taken together, Zhang Ziyi stood out just as much as the bride.
Last year, at the wedding of Lee Seung Gi and Lee Da In, actress Lee Yoo Bi (Lee Da In's older sister) was criticized for appearing in a bright pink tweed outfit, as elaborate as if attending a fashion event.
Lee Yoo Bi then explained that this was an outfit chosen for her by her younger sister.
This also shows that sometimes the criticism is due to the ingrained notion that guests must wear simple, dark colors.
According to Kyunghyang, these days, some Korean brides are breaking the rules of wedding dress. They prioritize their individuality by wearing black wedding dresses, which means guests are encouraged to wear white or other bright colors.
