Lee Yang-sook - Shall We Rest?

The "2025 Korean Contemporary Craft Elders and Elite Artists Exhibition," hosted by the Korea Craft Culture Association, will be held at the Iksan W Art Museum from July 19 to 28.

This exhibition will feature 10 elder and elite artists in the fields of ceramics, wood, metal, and fiber crafts who have been part of the flow of Korean contemporary crafts. They will showcase representative works that encompass tradition and modernity, artistry, and technicality.

The participating artists include Park Jong-hoon, Kim Hyun-sik, and Kim Moon-kyung in the ceramics category; Kim Yun-deok and Lee Yang-sook in fiber crafts; Kang Hyeong-gu and Lee Jae-young in wood crafts; and Kim Du-bong, Byun Jung-ho, and Kim Hong-yong in metal crafts. These artists represent mid-career and veteran artists in their respective fields.

The exhibition will feature a diverse spectrum of works, ranging from practical and artistic pieces combining ceramics with lacquer, to works revealing the poetic beauty of dyeing crafts by drawing lines and patterns on fibers, to sculptural fusion of wood and metal, and creative works combining metal with Bluetooth speaker components, proposing a meeting of crafts and technology.

These artists have been active in their respective fields for a long time, receiving recognition for their artistic and technical skills at events such as the Korea Art Exhibition, Craft Exhibition, and international art fairs. This exhibition is expected to be a platform that goes beyond a simple display of works, showcasing the living history and essence of creation that encapsulates the present and future of Korean contemporary crafts.

Lee Kwang-jin, the chairman of the Korea Craft Culture Association, expressed in his greeting, "Through the works created with fervent creative energy, I hope to convey the joy of cultural appreciation to the viewers and provide inspiration and encouragement to the craftsmen." He added, "I hope that all those who love crafts will directly experience the beauty and depth of Korean crafts through this exhibition, where tradition and modernity coexist."