Hanji Happenings

Paper and textiles ....... these words don't automatically go together and yet we are seeing more and more sophisticated fabrics being produced using a mixture of fibres, including Hanji (paper), which is producing some  stunning fashion designs.  I'm no fashion guru but I know what I like and even though I've been using Hanji for my 3 dimensional craft  I was blown away by the beautiful creations I saw recently on the catwalk at the Opening ceremony of the Hanji Festival in Sydney. Seeing the beautiful outfits being modeled defied everything I've ever thought of as paper. In the past I've purchased a few small pieces of Hanji fabric but what surprised me was the range and colours of fabrics I saw on that night.  Some of the clothes had a real silky glow and they looked soft and comfortable whilst others, although they looked a little stiffer and you could definitely tell they'd been made out of paper, they'd been beautifully crafted into wea...

A Korean take on what I'm doing .......  Here's an article that was written for the Yonhap Newspaper in Sydney by Ki Sung Kim.  He was a very friendly interviewer and we spent close to 45 mins chatting.  The article was written in Korean and has been translated thanks to  Jin Youn Kim. A little has been lost, or slightly misinterpreted in translation but it gives you the basics and his twist on it.   An Australian Female Hanji Missionary Coveney, "Amazed at Practicality" Jan Coveney, an Australian female 'hanji missionary' is posing for photo with one of her pieces displayed at the Korean Cultural Center, Sydney on 14, February.       "Most of the people around me have not even heard of Hanji craft but they get interested in it when they receive presents made of the Korean traditional paper and see the endless potential of the material." Jan Coveney, an Adelaidean woman, has been spreading out the artis...

  K- Paper (Hanji) Culture Festival   from 15 Feb - 29 Feb, 2016 at the Korean Cultural Centre, Sydney, Australia more information at info@koreanculture.org.au Ph: 02 8267 3400 15 Feb.               - Opening & Hanji Fashion Show 15 Feb - 29 Feb - Hanji Craft Exhibition 15 Feb - 16 Feb - Workshop experiences 15 Feb - 16 Feb - Paper Market I'll be there as I've been asked to be involved in the Festival, so as the only non Korean  I feel extremely privileged that they will have 5 of my pieces at the exhibition for the 2 weeks of the festival. I'm delighted and I can't help but reflect on what a wonderful way to help improve relations between Australia and South Korea by being able to appreciate the respective Cultures and their Arts. 'People can only live fully by helping others to live. When you give life to friends you truly live. Cultures can only realize their further richness...

Entrance to the Festival On the first weekend in May  for the last 19 years (except for last year due to the Korean ferry disaster period of mourning) they've held the Hanji Culture Festival in Jeonju, the Capital of Jeollabuk-do Province. This city 240 kms south of Seoul is not only renown as the centre of paper making in Korea but it's also the ancestral home of the descendants of Yi Seonggye, founder of the Joseon dynasty and it's famous for the Korean rice and vegetable dish called Bibimbap. My journey south from Seoul on the fast train , along with my 2 sisters Pam & Heather and my sister in law Pauline, took only 1hr and 20mins.    Hanji Industry Support Center During my Hanji Exhibition in April of this year I met a lovely Korean lady named Sue who happened to come from Jeonju so when I told her I was to visit the Hanji Festival this year she said she'd see what she could do.  Before I knew it she'd been in contact with the Festival organis...

The City of Jeonju  annually holds the Jeonju Hanji Culture Festival along with the National Hanji Craft Contest to promote the excellence of it's paper. In 2015 it's celebrating it's 19th anniversary and I've been fortunate enough to visit  the Festival after an absence of almost 12 years.  The last time I visited was when I was living in Pusan and Teaching English as a Second Language to students at the National University. I was encouraged to make the trip  by my Korean Hanji teacher who was adamant that Jeonju Hanji was the best you could buy. Jeonju is the centre of Hanji production in Korea and the base for 50% of the domestic Hanji manufacturers, and they currently account for 80% of the Hanji production in the country.  Hanji has always been famous throughout the Orient.  It was one of Korea's top exports during the 11th Century and a lthough it's been used as long-lasting paper for over a thousand years, it's more recently bee...