Jeongmin Lee is interested in the ways “memory is carried through craft and repetition.” On traditional Korean mulberry paper, or hanji, Lee draws delicate lines in ink and pigments known as bunchae, rendering rippling textures that whirl across the page. Steeped in local folklore and mythology, the Busan-based artist creates surreal scenes that conjure fantastical tales of life by the sea.
“Most of my recent projects begin with reading regional folktales, visiting places connected to those stories, and collecting fragments of history, mythology, and oral traditions,” she says. “I rarely paint a folktale exactly as it’s written; I’m more interested in its symbols, emotions, and the questions it leaves behind.”
Many of Lee’s compositions focus on women’s knowledge, labor, and resilience and how those qualities emerge through coastal storytelling. Tales of powerful sea gods and the diving traditions of the haenyeo commingle into balanced illustrations that translate the symbols and motifs of the region anew.
While her approach is labor-intensive, Lee enjoys utilizing such a meticulous, meditative technique. “Painting with traditional pigments requires a slow, layered process. The colors are built gradually, allowing the paper and pigments to create subtle textures that wouldn’t be possible with other materials,” she adds. “It gives me space to sit with these stories while I paint them.
Many of the works shown here are part of Daughters of the Sea, an ongoing series recently on view at the SĀBRS Festival in Riga. Lee hopes to expand the project into one that’s participatory and connects similar narratives from across the globe. “I’m exploring ways that folklore can become something people experience and talk about together, rather than something that exists only on a gallery wall,” Lee shares.
She’s also currently working on a graphic novel centering on Busan’s mythology and folklore, which she hopes to complete next year. Keep up with her projects on Instagram.
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