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| Installation view of the haenyeo exhibition at Little Haenyeo on Jeju Island, featuring Kim Jae-yi's "Magazine" on the left / Courtesy of Little Haenyeo |
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Little Haenyeo, a guesthouse on Jeju Island, is holding an exhibition introducing art and literature inspired by the culture of haenyeo, female divers of the island who have been designated as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage.
Kim Jae-yi, who moved to Jeju in 2011, portrays young and confident haenyeo on her canvas, defying the typical notion of the divers as elderly. The illustrator-turned-artist also presented her haenyeo paintings at a solo exhibition in the U.S. in 2017, garnering positive reviews for being sensual and bold.
Na Gang works with various mediums to portray the life of haenyeo and images of Jeju in her art. From her paintings of the sea to sculptural works using shells and the haenyeo's taewak buoy, Na captures the energy and spirituality of the island and the female divers who became its symbol.
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| An installation at a haenyeo exhibition, featuring haenyeo-related books, at Little Haenyeo on Jeju Island / Courtesy of Little Haenyeo |
Russian-born illustrator Nika Tchaikovskaya's picture book "Haenyeorina" and Polish writer Oliwia In's "Koreanska Syerna" as well as books of Jeju-based writers Kim Ran, Kim Jung-bae and Kim Bo-ra are also on display.
Kim Shin-sook, who released a collection of poems about a 12-year-old haenyeo's mother, will offer an online class on writing poems for children.
Kwon Sun-mi presents an array of dolls in haenyeo clothes, including mulsojungi (traditional cotton diving suit), more modern black and orange rubber diving suits and other equipment such as goggles and taewak with net.
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| Dolls wearing different types of haenyeo costumes created by Kwon Sun-mi / Courtesy of Little Haenyeo |
The exhibit is available online in Korean and English along with the physical exhibition running through Feb. 14.
Daniel Sangheon Lee, CEO of Planet Jeju who organized this exhibition, said, "This exhibition highlights the creation of female writers and artists as most of those who participated are working hard to overcome career breaks due to childcare. It is a small exhibition due to the COVID-19 constraints, but suitable for family visitors. I wanted to find hope amid the COVID-19 era through this exhibition of Jeju haenyeo content online and offline."
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| An installation at the haenyeo exhibition in Little Haenyeo on Jeju Island / Courtesy of Little Haenyeo |
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