Selected
Other Works
Works beyond the Washington, D.C. exhibitions — sculpture, tableware, character and picture book.
몽유향원도 (夢遊香園圖)
Dream Journey to the Fragrant Garden
Inspired by the Ulleung seokhyang of Dodong — a juniper designated as a National Forest Cultural Heritage and said to be around 2,000 years old, having endured wind and rain for centuries on the island’s rugged coastal cliffs.
The title echoes An Gyeon’s 15th-century painting Mongyu Dowondo (Dream Journey to the Peach Blossom Land). Just as An Gyeon unfolded an ideal land from a dream, this work seeks to revive the time and vitality of a deeply wounded tree in ceramic form. A juniper branch placed within it symbolizes the cycle of life that continues even after loss — a memory of, and a tribute to, the seokhyang.
완성되지 않은 것들에 대하여 — 균열과 치유의 경계에서
On Things Unfinished — At the Border of Crack and Healing
This work began from the reality of the Korean Peninsula and Dokdo, seen from my life on Ulleungdo. South Korea is rendered in blue glaze and North Korea in a golden outline, making the present division visible.
The breaks were joined using kintsugi: the cracks were restored with lacquer and finished so that golden lines flow across the surface. The gold does not hide the wounds; it reveals them, turning a divided reality into a symbol of connection — a record of hope moving toward wholeness.
겸재, 울릉도를 보다 Ⅰ — 겸재의 시선
Ulleungdo Through Gyeomjae’s Eyes I — Gyeomjae’s Gaze
Gyeomjae Jeong Seon was renowned for painting Korea’s real landscapes, yet he never painted Ulleungdo. This work began with a question: what would he have drawn if he had seen the island?
Elephant Rock, Samseonam, Noinbong, Songgotsan and Saja Rock are drawn in iron pigment, with lines softened in firing restored by ceramic pen — joining traditional technique and contemporary material. The central tray is finished in a glaze that recalls the Milky Way, with the form of Dokdo set upon it.
독도 그릇 : 섬 속의 섬 Ⅰ–Ⅳ
Island Within an Island — Dokdo Plates I–IV
Living on Ulleungdo, I face the East Sea every day. Beyond it, Dokdo is not simply an island to me but a presence that holds history, identity and values worth protecting.
Each plate places Dokdo in a sea of glaze — jade, deep blue, ochre — with points of gold like starlight on the water. Made to be used every day for food or treasured objects, they invite whoever uses them to think of Dokdo once more: not an isolated island, but a place connected to our lives.
울릉혜동
Ulleung Hyedong
Ulleung Hyedong is my present, my past, and a companion I will keep walking with. The character was born naturally over years of living on Ulleungdo, as the island’s landscapes and my own feelings overlapped.
Hyedong sleeps leaning against a tree, gazes at the sea from a mountaintop, sits with the wind on her head. Sometimes lonely, but always full because she is with nature — through illustration and ceramics, she is a record of the Ulleungdo I have lived, and of the island story I will keep writing.
멀리서, 가장 가까이
Far Away, Yet Closest
Can we be together, even when we cannot see each other? Through a love for someone out of reach, this picture book asks a quiet but deep question: am I someone who can be loved?
A girl and a whale, whose hearts connect simply by watching each other from afar — and the moment what she wanted to hide becomes what they share. Even without touching, love does not disappear; it remains as starlight, wind, scent and the sound of rain. Love does not need to be close to exist; it is a feeling already living within us.
A quiet story that seeps in deeply, offering warm comfort to children and adults alike. Set against the sea and nature of Ulleungdo, it continues the themes of the moment and the eternal that run through the artist’s ceramic work.
“The words and the warm illustrations blend beautifully — it was a comfort to read, and the feeling stayed with me long after.”
“The moment I saw the first picture, my heart softened. The words seem to melt into the pictures, and I found myself in tears.”
“Words and pictures that resonate so deeply, woven together so well. It stays with you — and it comforted me a great deal.”