New Zealand artist displays potential of generosity

The Institute for Cultural Diplomacy says its field is as old as explorers and traveling merchants.

For virtually every embassy in Seoul, people to people exchange is one of the cornerstones in forging strong relations between two countries.

A case in point would be local artist Jin Lee who moved to New Zealand in the late 1990s to explore her passion, the ancient art of stone carving.

With a hammer in one hand and a chisel in the other she found her calling in North Otago on New Zealand`s South Island.

There she discovered Oamaru limestone from a kind Kiwi family who ran the Parkside Quarry.

"They treated me as part of the family," she said. "Oamaru will always be my second home."

The reason why Lee chose limestone instead of the countless other materials on the market is because of its "timeless elegance and calming character, which soothes the atmosphere and urban dryness of the city."

The same stone is used in cathedrals, universities and other important buildings in Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

One of her first creations was seen recently at the New Zealand Unlimited cultural extravaganza at the COEX Convention center in Southern Seoul.

The embassy`s major event attracted tens of thousands of people. Visitors were greeted with free samples of New Zealand beef, mussels, cheeses, medicinal products and vodka.

Before visitors walked into the New Zealand showcase of culture, products and everything else an embassy can highlight to the public, they walked by Lee`s gigantic creations.

People were welcomed to touch and take pictures next to two two-ton, three-meter long limestone creations depicting the relationship between Korea and New Zealand.

One of her first major works and one of the two on display is called "Aotearoa," which is the Maori name for New Zealand and literally means "The Land of the Long White Cloud."

The Business and Professional Women`s Club in New Zealand found her sculpture to be symbolic of values which they strongly identified with.

Yet bringing her creation back to her home in Seoul was not an easy task and a tale that brings awe and inspiration much like the mountain views on the South Island.

After she had finished her creation Lee found out that the plans she had made before coming to New Zealand with a shipping company fell through.

She was stuck holding the bag, or in her case, a mallet, sander and a two-ton carving.

That is when a kind Korean businessman came to the rescue.

After reading an article about Lee in a New Zealand newspaper, businessman Choi Hyun, managing director of Southern Storm Fishing Ltd., decided to sponsor the shipping of the sculpture back to her home in Seoul.

The Sorbonne University graduate was ecstatic. Her New Zealand family were amazed that such a kind gesture could actually been made in this day and age.

From there her statue came back to Seoul but it was nine years before "Aotearoa" found a place to rest in her studio in Bupyeong, Gyeonggi Province.

By Yoav Cerralbo



(yoav@heraldm.com)