Korean crafts are making strides overseas. The “Hidden Match: An Exhibition of Korean Craft” is underway at the National Museum of Saudi Arabia, in Riyadh, while the “Constancy and Change in Korea Traditional Craft 2013” exhibit was just held in Taipei, Taiwan.

First Korean craft exhibition in the Middle East

The exhibition at the National Museum of Saudi Arabia is the first result of an action plan on tourism and crafts signed in May between the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) and the Saudi Supreme Commission for Tourism and Antiquities. The first Korean craft exhibition ever held in the Middle East, this exhibition shows the past and present of Korean craft works.

The “Hidden Match” exhibition is designed to introduce to Saudi visitors the hidden beauty and values of Korean arts and crafts and to introduce the ways in which the crafts are embedded in the daily lives of Koreans, forming a single unified whole.

The crafts are divided into clothing, kitchenware and household goods and then divided again into traditional crafts and modern reinterpretations. On display are 106 pieces of porcelain, lacquer-ware inlaid with mother-of-pearl, metal crafts and other household goods. Craftsmen who took part in the exhibition will demonstrate how to produce porcelain and lacquer-ware. There will be three workshops on traditional and modern porcelain and lacquer-ware.

 

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(Clockwise from top left) White porcelain by Kwon Dae-sup; porcelain by Jeon Seong-geon; celadon by Lee Ka-jin; grayish blue powdered celadon by Lee Kang-hyo; white porcelain by Lee Young-ho; and grayish blue powdered celadon by Huh Sang-wook (photos courtesy of the MCST) 

 

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(Clockwise, from top left) Lacquer-ware inlaid with mother-of-pearl by Song Bang-ung; close up of Choi Young-geun’s artwork; lacquer-ware by Lee Eun-hee; silver-layered crafts by Kim Sun-jung; a silver plate by Hong Jung-sil; and lacquer-ware inlaid with mother-of-pearl by Shon Dae-hyun (photos courtesy of the MCST)

 

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A room is decorated with crafts by Kim Young-seok. (photo courtesy of the MCST) 

 

Korean craft exhibition continues in Taiwan

The “Constancy and Change in Korean Traditional Craft 2013” exhibit was held in Milan, Italy, in April and moved to Taipei, Taiwan, for four days beginning November 21, as part of the Taiwan International Cultural and Creative Expo 2013. The exhibition received rave reviews in Milan (www.korea.net/NewsFocus/Culture/view?articleId=108179) and appeared in Korea in June.

The Taiwan exhibition is being held at the invitation of an official from the Taiwanese ministry of culture who was impressed with the Milan exhibition in April, which was held as part of the Triennale di Milano.

The Taiwanese annual expo, organized by the Taiwan’s Ministry of Culture, is a craft and design exhibition that attracts over 80,000 people every year. “The two exhibitions are being held at the request of Saudi Arabia and Taiwan. They are expected to promote the international exchange of Korean crafts in the future,” said a Korean culture ministry official. “We will continue to participate in major international craft and design exhibitions such as France’s Maison Et Objet and the SOFA Art and Design fair in Chicago.

The culture ministry plans to increase the size of its participation in the Triennale di Milano in 2014 to celebrate the 130th anniversary of Korea-Italy diplomatic relations next year. It will also hold another Korean craft exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris in partnership with a French craft association in 2015. 

 

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(Clockwise, from top left) Patchwork linens by Kang Keum-sung; white porcelain by Kwon Dae-sup; lacquer chest inlaid with metal decorations by Sohn Dae-hyun; and a hanbok created by designer Suh Young-hee and three others (photos courtesy of the MCST) 

 

[Source: Korea.net]