Page 11 - 이헌국 조형예술 55년전 한전아트센터 2025. 9. 18 – 9. 26

GAZING INTO THE FUTURE THROUGH

“A Journey of 110 Years”

In reflecting on Professor Hun-Gook Lee’s sculptural inquiry, which spans more than half a century, I found
myself hesitant to immediately pick up my pen. This was not due to a lack of admiration, but because his body
of work encompasses such a vast spectrum. To examine it requires discerning the consistent philosophical
stance embedded within a diversity of formal approaches.

In the 2012 monograph, Professor Lee categorized his artistic periods as follows:

1976–1980 : The Dawn of Contemporary Korean Ceramics and Myself
1987–1995 : Harmonic Expressions for Gestation
1996–2005 : The Meaning of Being through Expansions of Creation
2006–2011 : A Physicist’s Approach to Human Aesthetics
Since 2012 : Wisdom and Values in the Life of the Korean People

This categorization reveals his trajectory—one that began with an internal search for identity and gradually
expanded toward a profound inquiry into the essence of national and ceramic culture. To merely regard him
as a “potter” or “craftsperson” would be a misjudgment, obscuring the scope and depth of his intellectual and
creative pursuits. Though the term “ceramist” is not incorrect, it alone cannot fully represent the conceptual
richness of his artistic world.

Attempting to fit his practice into conventional definitions of “ceramics” or “craft” risks trivializing the value of
his oeuvre. It risks reducing his creative freedom to a formal constraint and overlooking the significance of his
contributions. What we require now is a more expansive and flexible perspective—one that understands his
work as rooted in ceramics, but evolving toward an expanded field of artistic expression.

To understand the significance of Professor Lee’s work in the context of contemporary artistic evolution, it is
helpful to examine broader movements in visual art. In recent decades, a shift in terminology has emerged:
the traditional notion of “fine art” is being replaced, or rather expanded, by more inclusive terms that reflect
hybrid artistic practices. This linguistic transition mirrors larger cultural and technological shifts.

Previous classifications of art—such as sculpture (categorized by material: metal, wood, stone), painting
(Eastern vs. Western styles), crafts (ceramics, fiber, wood lacquer, metal), or design disciplines—can no longer
fully encompass the hybrid, multisensory, and interdisciplinary works of today. Consider the interventions
of artists like Christo Javacheff, who wrapped entire islands, bridges, and valleys in fabric; or Joseph Beuys,
who planted trees and performed durational acts with shovels; or John Cage, who performed a piece by
sitting silently for 4 minutes and 33 seconds. Can such acts be meaningfully classified within conventional art
categories?

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