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When Allendale and Seoul come together to celebrate the arts

September 05, 2016

When Allendale and Seoul come together to celebrate the arts

This fall, Grand Valley State University and the Department of Art and Design host the 2nd GVSU and SeoulTech Art & Design Faculty Exhibition. The exhibition is part of the many other events scheduled for the 14th Fall Arts Celebration at GVSU.

Featuring a wide range of art in various media, the exhibit presents 17 pieces from faculty at the Department of Art and Design at GVSU and 23 pieces from the College of Art and Design at SeoulTech. The public should expect to see works in ceramics, digital imagery, graphic design, jewelry/metalsmithing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, and video. 

Since 2008, GVSU and SeoulTech has held a partnership that led to student abroad exchanges, two summer International Ceramics Workshops at GVSU and several Visiting Artists experiences. Every May, Hoon Lee, Associate Professor of Ceramics and exhibitor, embarks on a 13-hour trip to Seoul, Korea. And he says: "It takes about 13 hours to fly to Seoul, Korea. Every May I embark on this journey, and I haven’t minded it at all. The most recent trip was an especially exciting one, as it involved a visit to SeoulTech, where we discussed in detail the 2nd GVSU & SeoulTech Art & Design Faculty Exchange Exhibition that GVSU will host in September 2016. One of the most dramatic contributions to a society comes from visual enrichment, which often leads to a new understanding and questioning of our role in society. Our experiences will cultivate cultural diversity within our respective Universities, as well as within our larger communities, through sharing our creative studies. I sincerely thank every single person who contributed to the proliferation of the GVSU & SeoulTech Exchange Program."

Part of the partnership, the faculty exchange exhibitions happen every three years, with the planning and hosting of the event alternating between GVSU and SeoulTech. In 2013, SeoulTech held the first edition of the exhibition at the Museum of Art at Seoul National University of Science and Technology in Seoul, Korea. This September, GVSU is the host institution. Jinny Jenkins, chair of the Department of Art and Design and exhibitor, says that "the Department of Art and Design at Grand Valley State University is delighted to extend our welcome to our Seoul National University of Science and Technology (SeoulTech) faculty colleagues in the College of Art and Design as they participate in the second exchange exhibit of our faculty work in the Performing Arts Center Art Gallery in fall 2016. (...) We hope that future years will produce more evidence of our mutual friendship and regard for each other, and continued opportunities for interaction in the arts."

There is a mutual sense of excitement from both institutions about the event. Myung Ah Lee, Dean of the College of Art and Design and exhibitor, states that "this exchange exhibition will be an opportunity to communicate the cultures and arts of the East and the West and to strengthen the connection." Professor Myung Ah Lee also says that she looks forward to consistently expanding new opportunities for exchange and to further strengthening the partnership between the two universities.

The exhibition features works by: 

  • Collin Bradford (GVSU - Visual Studies and Foundations)

  • Anna Campbell (GVSU - Sculpture, Visual Studies and Foundations)

  • Kyoung Choul Cha (SeoulTech - Metal Craft)

  • Yu Jin Cho (SeoulTech - Metal Craft)

  • Byong Keon Choi (SeoulTech - Ceramics)

  • Seung Wook Choi (SeoulTech - Metal Craft)

  • Yang Deok Chun (SeoulTech - Web Design)

  • Brett Colley (GVSU - Drawing, Printmaking and Foundations)

  • Jill Eggers (GVSU - Painting and Foundations)

  • Timothy Fisher (GVSU - Painting and Foundations)

  • Ke Ryoon Han (SeoulTech - Video Art)

  • Kyung Woo Han (SeoulTech - Installation)

  • Dellas Henke (GVSU - Printmaking)

  • Seung Hye Hong (SeoulTech - Painting)

  • William Hosterman (GVSU - Drawing, Printmaking and Foundations)

  • Yong Jin Hwang (SeoulTech - Painting)

  • Virginia Jenkins (GVSU - Drawing and Foundations)

  • Jae Yong Kim (SeoulTech - Ceramics)

  • Jong Hyun Kim (SeoulTech - Ceramics)

  • Se Il Kim (SeoulTech - Sculpture)

  • Hoon Lee (GVSU - Ceramics and Foundations)

  • Jung Suk Lee (SeoulTech - Ceramics)

  • Myung Ah Lee (SeoulTech - Ceramics)

  • Sang Jin Lee (SeoulTech - Product and Environmental Design)

  • Vinicius Lima (GVSU - Graphic Design and Foundations)

  • Seoung Sook Nah (SeoulTech - Environmental Graphic Design)

  • Young Jae Oh (SeoulTech - Studio Art)

  • Seoung Bae Park (SeoulTech - Advertising Design)

  • Woo Hyuk Park (SeoulTech - Editorial Design and Typography)

  • Raúl Peña (GVSU - Graphic Design and Foundations)

  • Jung Min Pyun (SeoulTech - Communications Art)

  • Beverly Seley (GVSU - Jewelry/Metalsmithing and Foundations)

  • Jae Hyup Shin (SeoulTech - Metal Craft)

  • Kirsten Strom (GVSU - Art History)

  • Jin Hwan Suh (SeoulTech - Metal Craft)

  • Norwood Viviano (GVSU - Sculpture and Foundations)

  • Richard Weis (GVSU - Painting and Foundations)

  • Paul Wittenbraker (GVSU - Visual Studies and Foundations)

  • Eun Sil Yi (SeoulTech - Identity Design)

  • Renee Zettle-Sterling (GVSU - Jewelry/Metalsmithing and Foundations)

The exhibition opened at the Grand Valley State University Performing Arts Gallery this past August 26th and works can be seen until November 4th. The gallery is located in the Allendale Campus and is open Monday through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free. For more information on the exhibition, please contact Prof. Jenkins at [email protected].

For more information on related Fall Arts Celebration events, please visit the official website here.

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