Magic Millstone

Magic Millstone

In Korean traditional folktales, various everyday crafts were depicted with extraordinary powers as key enablers of the stories. Among them, the "Magic Millstone" is a fascinating object that, when the millstone is ground, can produce any item one wishes for. These traditional folk crafts maintain their practical functions from reality while incorporating supernatural abilities. This project uses the "Magic Millstone'' tale as a compass to create a vibrant installation by adding imagination and expressiveness to the materials, techniques, and forms of craftsmanship. Textile artist Sun Lee and 3D artist spacekkabbi blend their respective craft and digital techniques to create an installation bridging both realms. With Sun Lee’s Hanji Paper sculpture enabling and triggering spacekkabbi’s 3D objects by utilizing the Unknown Ocean team's AR technology, the Magic Millstone immersive installation aims to explore alternative artistic expressions in the preservation and evolution of craftsmanship. Furthermore, visitors will have the opportunity to freely traverse the boundaries between tradition and virtual space, experiencing the awkwardness and collisions that arise from the interaction of digital and physical, intangible and tangible. They will also contemplate digital approaches through the perspective of traditional craft, providing a space for modern artists to propose craftsmanship as not merely objects but as mediums or new attitudes and behaviors that stimulate imagination. This exhibition will serve as an experimental ground for contemplating new definitions of traditional crafts and the direction in which it will harmonize with the next generation.