Full of Art! The Art Center White Block of Heyri Art Village - by Kim Yevin

Art Center White Block is a striking white building which located the center of Heyri. It is one of the biggest art centers in Heyri and has 4-5 exhibitions a year. We, who have visited Heyri many times, already knew the Art Center White Block’s building. For its beautiful and impressive exterior, Art Center White Block won many prizes, including the AIA New England Design Award 2011.

One of the most attractive points of the building’s appearance is the use of many diagonal lines. Both inside and outside, stairways of the building have gentle diagonal walkways  that are fun to walk along. Another feature is the open structure which gives a lot of natural light. When we looked around the building at 4 p.m., we could enjoy the natural light and pleasant artwork.

Art Center White Block currently has an exhibition of ‘Meaningful Patterns’. Five pattern artists joined together to show their unique pattern artwork. We found the strong personalities of pattern artists through their art, and we all had a unique personal feeling for each style. A small art shop, a roof garden and a cafe which has delicious ‘ice mint chocolate latte’ welcomed us too.

With its spacious building, the White Block offers various artistic experiences and opportunities for everyone, including artists, investors and visitors. White Block is full of art. It helps every visitor to become more art-friendly.

Art Center White Block’s mission for Korean contemporary art is fostering next generation artists. To accomplish this mission, it also runs a studio for promising rookies of visual art. White Block provides them with not only a personal workroom but also opportunities for team exhibitions. This investment by White Block is obviously beneficial. Many potential artists give up their passion and talent because of financial challenges.

We found our visit to Art Center White Block meaningful, and a good opportunity to be supporters of Korean art society.

Visit to the Territorial Culture Museum of Dokdo - by Lee JiEun

The Territorial Culture Museum of Dokdo - July 17, 2014

We visited The Territorial Culture Museum of Dokdo in the afternoon. It is located in Heyri Art Village in Paju. We were welcomed by the president of gallery, Mr. Ahn Jae Young. He explained many things about Dokdo to us.

We know that Dokdo belongs to us. However, some Koreans find it hard to explain why it belongs to us. There are three reasons why Dokdo is important to us:

First of all, It is an important symbol of the independence of Korea, and had been so even before Japan occupied Korea during the first part of this century.

Second, Dokdo is important because it has military worth. Japan was able to defeat the powerful Russian Navy because they built a watchtower on Dokdo. The watchtower on Dokdo allows us to monitor the Pacific Fleet of  Russia and the movements of naval and air forces of North Korea and Japan.  Overall, it provides us with enough military data to help ensure peace and security in Northeast Asia.

Last, but not least, Dokdo is important because of  the natural resources it offers to Korea.. Dokdo is an invaluable fishing ground that has infinite values as the fishery base of the East Sea.

I hope more and more people will learn more about Dokdo so they can understand why it is so important to all Koreans.

The Territorial Culture Museum of Dokdo is located in Heyri Art Village, building F34, Level B1. Further information can be found at their website, www.gallerydokdo.com

A Visit to Han's Gallery - by 서혁 - Seo Hyuk

Heyri Art Village - July 25th, 2014 - Meeting with Mr. Han Sang Koo

We could find Han’s gallery easily because of the leader David’s preparation. Even though Mr. Han was very busy at that time, he gladly came to the his gallery by our call.

The building is not so big, but his workplace and the exhibition place fit the building in harmony. In his gallery, there are many works of art including small model houses made of paper, as well as  landscape paintings in oil and watercolor. The ‘beautiful house’ models are especially beautiful and elaborate. We could see his effort to make those. The ‘beautiful house’ models are made using the process that he draws the paintings on the plane of paper  first, then he folds and attaches the paper. Mr. Han mentioned that , he needs more than 30 hours to make one model house.

In addition, the paintings in oil and watercolor on the walls are also good. He said that he paints those with no special intention. Because of this, some people see only the landscape in the painting,  but others see different things such as chaos or harmony. In this way, I realized that different people can understand different things in the same work of art  and I began to understand that being an artist must be an amazing profession! .

We also heard his thoughts about difficulties he has faced due to his art. Mr. Han said that he can not get much money from his gallery (art), and there are some who suggest that he should close his gallery because of this problem. However, Mr. Han told us that he runs the gallery not for earning money but for enjoying the art. In addition, he said that although artists can not contribute to public welfare like engineers or politicians, they can affect people by art and they have their own parts in society. He said that he is satisfied with that.

We learned many things from Mr. Han and saw many works of art in his gallery. It was a very valuable time for us. I also recommend this place to other people,  because it is a gallery which contains his artistic passion and a workplace where people can experience making a ‘beautiful house’.

Han's Gallery is located in Heyri Art Village, building G5. Further information can be found on the Heyri website, www.heyri.net

A visit with Mr. Lee An Soo, President of the Artists' Committee of Heyri Art Village - By Kong Wai Ming, Hong Kong

Daniel, the group leader of this trip, found the way to the guesthouse. We arrived early and Mr Lee greeted us with a warm welcome as we all introduced ourselves.

He  showed us around the guest house. Then, we visited the bedrooms for visitors, After visiting all those lovely rooms, we went back to the library and had a nice chat with Mr Lee. He mainly shared information about Heyri Art Village, like how it was established, and how they run it through development planning.After our discussion we were  invited to an official opening ceremony of bronze containers. It was really our great pleasure to be engaged in such a grand event and exchange our thoughts with the other guests. Our Heyri trip ended a with delicious BBQ buffet dinner.

During the visit, I was fascinated by the concept of Heyri Art Village and the passion of Mr Ansoo Lee.  At first, this village was designed as ‘the book village' linked Paju Publishing Town in 1997. But in the processing of the project, lots of artists in various cultural fields joined it.

The concept of the village is to allow both residents and visitors relax and chill in such a beautiful area. It is aimed to preserve and maximize the natural surroundings by conserving mountains, mounds, swamps, and rivulets. The ecological motive is consistently be applied to all areas, including architecture, energy systems, scenery, and pavement. It is definitely the best ecological village where the Nature can breathe. Around three hundred and seventy members: writers, artists, architects, and musicians are building their artistic spaces, houses, work rooms, museums, galleries. One unique point is that all buildings and houses are no more than three stories.

Although the board of directors face a lot of challenges during the development of Heyri, they try their best to make the best out of it and promote it to people around the world. I like the way  they create a peaceful area where visitors can put their burden or worries aside and enjoy the moment with their friends or loved ones. I think this is probably a good place for retirees to live in also.