Spain is the guest country of honor in the Cheongju Crafts Biennale 2023, which celebrates its thirteenth edition of the September 1 to October 15, 2023 at Cheongju Culture Factory (South Korea). This meeting of contemporary creation attracts more than 300,000 visitors and will allow you to discover nearly 3,000 creators from 60 countries around the world.
The Spanish participation, of which it is part Vidrio Sorribes, has been promoted by EOI School of Industrial Organization and its craft promotion area, Fundesarte, which included curator Rubén Torres for the selection of works and artists.
On this occasion, Spanish crafts will occupy an exceptional place in a large exhibition space of 730 m², where a selection of more than 150 creations by 31 artists from all over Spain will be shown. Under the title "Soul+Matter” a set of pieces of exceptional quality will be presented, which will allow attendees to experience the diversity, richness, creativity and quality of Spanish artisan workshops.
Soul + Matter
Thirty-one artists from various disciplines have been selected to show a representation of current contemporary Spanish craftsmanship: Mercedes Vicente (textile), Regina Dejiménez (textile), Soledad Santisteban (textile), Adriana Meunié (vegetable fibers), Idoia Cuesta (textile ), Francisco Carrera (textile), Mónica Guilera (vegetable fibers), Elisabet Urpí and Nacho Umpiérrez de Eliurpi (vegetable fibers), Benjamín Ramírez de Da Capo Sculpture (marble), Jean Briac (marble), Roger Coll (ceramics), Caterina Roma (ceramics), María Oriza (ceramics), Myriam Jiménez (ceramics), Raúl Mouro (ceramics), Rafael Galindo (ceramics), Fernando Garcés (ceramics), Raquel Vidal and Pedro Paz de Canoa Lab (ceramics), Stella Rahola (ceramics), glass), Sara Sorribes (glass), Ferran Collado (glass), Marc Monzó (jewelry), José Marín (jewelry), Marta Armada (jewelry), Eva Fortuño (jewelry), Toni Porto (wood), Ricardo Tena (metal) , Natividad Rodríguez (biomaterial), and Victoria Rabal (paper).
The exhibition presented is a unique opportunity to learn about the work of contemporary Spanish artisans, who have managed to create pieces that transcend the merely material and rise to a metaphysical plane of essence and soul. Curator Rubén Torres assures that the selection of works highlights the tension between preservation and change through the inheritance of the materials and processes used. The exhibition invites the visitor to contemplate a carefully curated selection of works that seek to transcend time, while maintaining their original essence and context. This is an exceptional occasion to appreciate the skill and talent of these creators, and to reflect on the meaning and value of their work in our current society.
About Cheongju Crafts Biennale
The historic city of Cheongju is the birthplace of the Iron Age and Jikji, the oldest book printed with the world's first known movable metal type. The Cheongju Crafts Biennale, which began in 1999 as the world's first crafts biennale, has established itself as a major contemporary crafts event over the past 20 years. It is a cultural event that divines the sensibilities of contemporary artists and expresses their emotions, maintaining the balance between practicality and the art of craftsmanship.
Deployed in a unique location, a renovated former tobacco factory, the Cheongju Biennale is a milestone for the arts and crafts sector on an international scale. Bringing together more than 3,000 artists from different countries, it offers an extensive program of activities every year, including fairs, competitions, conferences, original projects from the Cheongju Museum and master classes.
