To coincide with London Fashion Week, the KCC’s next exhibition showcases young Korean fashion designers in London. LKL’s review of the show can be found here.
A NEW SPACE AROUND THE BODY: Emerging Korean fashion designers
1 Feb 2012 – 28 Feb 2012
Korean Cultural Centre UK | Grand Buildings | 1-3 Strand | London WC2N 5BW
Entrance on Northumberland Avenue
The Korean Cultural Centre UK proudly presents:
A NEW SPACE AROUND THE BODY – Emerging Korean Fashion Designers, an exhibition that explores the new generation of South Korean designers, whose works are characterised by humour, hypothetic worlds and highly sculptural creations, almost appearing as a frame for the body. With an explosion of colour, modern techniques, craft and unexpected fabric combinations, their work can be seen as a reconstruction of the constituted ideal of beauty and non beauty, both on a visual, intellectual and philosophical level.
Exhibiting are:
Minky Jaemin Ha, Juhee Han, Ara Jo, Minju Kim, Yeashin Kim, Yoolhee Ko, Katleen Kye and Unbounded AWE by Laykuni.All are graduates from the prestigious fashion departments at Royal Academy of Fine Art, Koninklijke Academie voor Schone Kunsten in Antwerp, Central Saint Martins and London Collage of Fashion. In a short space of time these designers have already had high profile collaborations such as Lady Gaga and featured in Vogue, ELLE, Dazed and Confused, ID magazine.
Curated by Ji Hye Hong and Sofia Hedman (independent fashion curator) this exhibition is also part of the inaugural International Fashion Showcase, developed by the British Council and British Fashion Council. The International Fashion Showcase coincides with London’s Fashion Week and sees fashion designers from across the globe exhibiting their works throughout London. The Korean Cultural Centre UK (1-3 Strand) is proud to be a part of this Showcase, utilising its central London location just a stone’s throw from the home of London Fashion Week at Somerset House.
The participating designers for the exhibition are, in alphabetical order:
1. MINKY JAEMIN HA – minkymouse.com
After studying art at Hong-Ik University in Seoul, Minky Jaemin Ha completed his BA in Fashion Design in Womenswear at Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design (CSM) in 2011. Minky’s highly sculptural work can almost be seen as a frame for the body. His latest collection ‘What men live by’ is a symbolic and metaphorical statement – each outfit shown symbolises a certain stage of one’s life in capitalism. Born, Adapted, Addicted, Dead, Reborn and Sacrifice.
2. JUHEE HAN – juheehan.com
Juhee Han recently graduated with a BA in Fashion Design with Knitwear from CSM in 2011. She is currently working for Nicole Farhi and has previously worked as a studio assistant at BLESS, amongst others. Juhee’s collections can be defined as being an explosion of colour and unexpected fabric and texture combinations. Her work consists of mainly knitwear and other handicrafts such as crochet and macramé.
3. ARA JO – notjustalabel.com/arajo
Since graduating with a BA in Fashion Design Womenswear from CSM in 2009, Ara has been working for her own label – ‘Ara Jo’ – and also works as a freelance fashion designer, collaborating with Lady Gaga and many other artists. In 2011 she exhibited in ARRRGH! Monsters in Fashion at Benaki Museum in Athens. One of Ara’s obsessions involve mysterious creatures, hence she incorporates many of these beautiful objects as muses for her collection.
4. MINJU KIM – antwerp-fashion.be/SHOW2011/2.html
After studying at Samsung Art and Design Institute, Minju Kim is currently in her third year at the Fashion Department of the Royal Academy of Fine Art in Antwerp. Her second year collection ’Love Power’ explored the theme of Korean girls who become cute lovemachine robots for boys in search of perfect girls. Minju works with pure and concentrated forms of ideas. Her work can be seen as a reconstruction of the constituted ideal of beauty and non-beauty, on a visual and philosophical level.
5. YEASHIN KIM – yeashinkim.com
Yeashin Kim graduated from London College of Fashion (LCF) with a BA in Fashion Design Technology in 2011. She won the Most Creative Student Collection award at the WGSN Global Fashion Awards and was also selected as one of the best fashion graduates of 2011 by Vogue UK. Yeashin Kim’s colourful collection incorporates a lot of wool embroidery and crafted details, as she mixes different materials in unexpected ways.
6. YOOLHEE KO – yoolheeko.com
Yoolhee Ko initially began her studies in Fashion Design and completed her BA and MA in Jewelry Design at the Royal Academy of Fine Art in Antwerp, in 2009. Yoolhee currently runs her own jewelry brand and simultaneously trains at a Jewelry atelier to enhance her skills with diamonds. Yoolhee Ko not only uses both natural and modern materials and techniques for her sculptural work, she also incorporates experimental imagery for her men’s jewelry collections.
7. KATLEEN KYE – kyefashion.com
Since completing her MA in Fashion Design Menswear at CSM 2011, Kathleen Hanhee Kye has received enormous press coverage both in Korea and internationally. After completing her BA in Menswear at CSM in 2009, Kathleen had her first solo exhibition and was a finalist for I-D Dunedin Fashion Award. Instead of using conventional patterns, Kathleen’s design ethos is to represent new fun-loving witty unisex shapes.
8. UNBOUNDED AWE BY LAYKUNI – laykuni.com
Lay Ku completed her BA in Menswear at CSM, MA in Menswear at LCF in 2009. Lay’s own label, ‘unbounded AWE’ which was founded in 2009, exemplifies surrealistic images. The label AWE was formed to represent the unbounded imaginative communication between the subject ‘A’ and the public ‘WE’. Lay works very conceptually with her designs and as much as the clothes, the surrounding space is used as a canvas.
Guest Curator Sofia Hedman
Sofia Hedman is an independent fashion curator and exhibition designer. She was involved in several fashion exhibitions, including a curator of HEDMANKLING’s ‘Shades Down in Tokyo Town’ exhibition in Tokyo, an archivist for ‘Alexander McQueen; Savage Beauty’ at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and curator Judith Clark’s assistant on ‘The concise Dictionary of Dress’ exhibition at Victoria & Albert Museum. She has co-curated this exhibition with a deep enthusiasm for avant garde Korean Fashion designers. She will continue her relationship with Korea by being involved in the ‘SIMONE HANDBAG MUSEUM’ project in Seoul as well, which is under the direction of Judith Clark.
[email protected]
Graphic Design – Serge Martynov
Exhibition Design/Wood Work – Orlando Campbell & Julius LightfootPhoto Credits:
Minky Jeamin Ha What men live by? – Photo Louis Park
Juhee Han Untitled – Photo Catwalking
Ara Jo 07:82 whitemare – Photo Fabrice Lachant www.fabricelachant.com for Fashion156.com
Minju Kim Love Power – Photo Etienne Tordoir, Catwalkpictures.com
Yeashin Kim Sea creatures – Photo Marina Magalhaes
Yoolhee Ko Reflection – Photo Zeb Daemen
Kathleen Kye KingKong Dreams – Photo Catwalking
Unbounded AWE by Laykuni – Mummy Project
Links:
(automatically generated) Read LKL’s review of this event here.