Dancheong Becomes a Planet, Dokdo Rides a Red Horse... Young Artists' "Yeomwon (Wish)"

Korea National University of Cultural Heritage’s Special Exhibition "Yeomwon"
Infusing Contemporary Sensibility into Traditional Techniques
Attention Drawn to Use of Restored Pigment "Dongnok"

Hyunbin Jeon’s 'Sejo Eojin'

In celebration of the Year of the Red Horse (Byeongo Year) in 2026, an exhibition exploring the contemporary transformation of traditional painting will be held.

The Korea National University of Cultural Heritage announced on the 23rd that it will host a special exhibition titled "Yeomwon (Wish)" at Gallery Eun in Jongno-gu, Seoul, from January 28 to February 2. Forty-three students and faculty members from the Department of Traditional Arts and Crafts will participate, presenting around fifty works created using traditional techniques and materials.

The theme, "Yeomwon," encapsulates not only personal wishes but also the collective hopes embedded in the national sentiment. The artists reinterpret the auspicious meanings found in traditional forms such as dancheong (decorative coloring on wooden buildings), Buddhist paintings, and portraits through a modern visual language.

One notable aspect is the bold variation of traditional iconography. Jimin Lee, in "Dancheong Planet," visualizes the regular patterns of dancheong as cosmic images by likening them to the principles of planetary motion. Jiweon Choi, in "Jeokmado," combines the dynamism of a red horse with the motif of Dokdo. Amid these experimental attempts, Hyunbin Jeon’s "Sejo Eojin" serves as an anchor, meticulously verifying and restoring the materials and techniques based on Kim Eunho’s 1935 sketch, powerfully conveying the archetypal aesthetics at the core of traditional painting.

Jimin Lee's 'Dancheong Planet'

There is also a focus on experimentation with materials. Works utilizing the traditional pigment "Dongnok" (copper green, a green pigment made from oxidized copper), which the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage successfully restored, will be unveiled. This case, where academic achievements in the laboratory have been translated into creative materials for the art field, is recognized as demonstrating the potential applications of traditional pigments.

A university representative explained the exhibition’s intent, stating, "We aimed to evoke the aesthetics of traditional painting with a contemporary sensibility, inspired by the vitality and forward momentum symbolized by the Year of the Red Horse." The exhibition is free of charge and will be open every day without closure.