Human history can be divided into before and after the appearance of the needle. Humankind continued to step forward to evolve themselves, until they were faced with the unbearable hardship of bitter cold in the ice age. It was the needle, and the clothes and shoes that were made by it, that enabled humankind to overcome the glacial chill. As creatures who pursued the beauty of symmetry even when making coarse tools like handaxes, humans have turned the backstitch for leather clothing into a work of art.

Kim Yun-seon’s quilting with dyed threads shows the highest perfection that could be achieved with sewing. She creates such beautiful and durable works, with a twist of Korean mulberry paper sewn stitch by stitch using colorful threads. Kim Yun-seon cherished the tobacco pouch of her grandfather, and provides us with the opportunity to appreciate the elegance of her quilted piece with dyed threads, passing it on to her daughter and her pupils to succeed the tradition. In Gyujung chiru jaengnongi (A Quarrel among the Seven Elements for Making Clothes), the needle boasts her art as “narrowly and widely stitching at will so as to skillfully make a piece of cloth.” It is time to enjoy the beauty of gorgeous sewing arts at the exhibition of Kim Yun-seon’s Quilting with Dyed Threads.

Selected in 2015 as a Skilled Craft Master in the field of quilting with dyed threads by the Ministry of Employment and Labor
1997. Presented with the Chairman’s Award by The Foundation for the Preservation of Cultural Properties at The 22nd Korea Annual Traditional Handicraft Art Exhibition
2003. Invited to the Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival NHK
2012. Presented with the Award of the Minister of Knowledge Economy at The 42nd Korea Handicraft Art Exhibition