At Doosan Art Lab 2025, an annual exhibition showcasing emerging artists, sculptor Goyo Son and world-class ballerino Jeon Min Cheol have joined forces to create an introspective and deeply personal series titled “Jeon Min Cheol, Cold Winds and Campfire (Warmth)”. The exhibition, currently on display at Doosan Art Center in Seoul, explores themes of resilience, warmth, and artistic expression through sculpture.

Jeon Min Cheol, soon to join the Mariinsky Ballet, one of the world’s most prestigious ballet companies, was asked by Goyo Son about his deepest wish. His answer was surprisingly simple—to watch a fire and experience the solace of "불멍" (a Korean term for meditating while gazing at flames). Inspired by this response, Son created a sculpture that encapsulates both the serenity and exhaustion of the artist’s demanding journey.

Upon entering the exhibition space, visitors are met with a sculpted white leg, seemingly fragile yet strong. This leg, cast from Jeon Min Cheol’s actual limb, emanates warmth when touched, thanks to embedded heating elements. Son explains, “Min Cheol’s life is so hectic that his wish was merely to sit by a fire. I wanted to share a moment of stillness with him through my work. Since the knees feel the most heat when warming by a fire, I integrated heating wires so that the warmth can be physically felt.”

Jeon Min Cheol himself took part in sculpting another piece titled “Jeon Min Cheol, Cold Winds and Campfire (You, As You Are)”, a delicate and elongated form crafted from aluminum, glass, and fishing lines. The piece captures the grace of a ballerino’s movement through its thin, tension-filled lines, culminating in an almost shattering fragility at the glass-tipped edges—an analogy for the paradox of strength and vulnerability in ballet. The work is also rooted in Jeon’s reflection on ballet’s relentless pursuit of perfection. He remarked, “In ballet, no matter how many times I rehearse, I can still make mistakes on stage. But with sculpture, once the process is perfected, the final form stands unshaken. That is something I envy.” Son responded by allowing Jeon to sculpt using fragile materials like Styrofoam, which were then cast into sturdy aluminum, symbolizing the transformation of imperfection into permanence.

Jeon’s artistic journey has not been without obstacles. His path to ballet was initially met with resistance from his father, a struggle documented in 2017 on SBS’s "Young Talent Discovery" (영재발굴단), where a teenage Jeon asked, “Dad, can’t you see how happy I am?” His words resonated deeply, leading Son to propose this collaboration. “I was fascinated by how much energy and dedication he must have invested in turning his dream into reality. I wanted to absorb that energy into my sculpture and understand the hidden stories behind it,” said Son.

Beyond Goyo Son and Jeon Min Cheol’s collaboration, Doosan Art Lab 2025 features works by Kim Yu Ja, Noh Song Hee, Jang Da Eun, and Jang Young Hae, each addressing unique narratives through various media. Jang Young Hae’s video piece "annie, cobalt" examines the erasure of historical violence, documenting a massacre site in Gyeongsan that was later turned into a golf course. Kim Yu Ja’s photographic series questions the boundaries between the seen and unseen, while Noh Song Hee transforms Doosan Gallery into a virtual exhibition space reflecting her past works. Jang Da Eun presents an installation featuring six windows, each telling a layered story about separated times and spaces.

The exhibition runs until March 8, offering a rare glimpse into the creative processes of Korea’s emerging artists.

Sayart / Maria Kim, sayart2022@gmail.com