Memory sometimes becomes a source of contemplation, and at other times a force that sustains life itself. Artist Woo Si-hyung’s unglazed ceramic works, born from the kiln, appear rugged yet deeply delicate, leaving profound resonance.
These works awaken nostalgia (鄕愁) within the heart and offer comfort to those who use them. As autumn foliage deepens, we invite you to experience lingering nostalgia and longing for the past at Teahouse Hada.
About the Artist
While studying ceramics and glass at Hongik University, Woo Si-hyung participated in an exchange program in the United States, where exposure to diverse cultures became a turning point in his artistic journey. After graduation, he built wood kilns in Australia, encountering various ceramic artists and becoming deeply fascinated by the primal nature of wood firing. Returning to Korea in December 2010, he established a kiln in Eumseong, Chungcheongbuk-do, where he continues to create works surrounded by mountains, embedding the landscape itself into clay. After completing training in the United States, the artist moved to Australia, building kilns and firing ceramics each month. Upon returning to Korea the following year, he settled in Eumseong and constructed his own climbing kiln, continuing unglazed ceramic work through techniques and firing data developed entirely through personal experience. The firing process lasts nearly one hundred hours, during which the artist sleeps only a few hours each day while continuously tending the flames and waiting for the ceramics to emerge. This long endurance perhaps approaches a state of selfless transcendence. The spirit embedded within these ceramics appears through the sublimation of fire and wood ash inside the kiln, creating works that are both powerful and flawlessly pure—qualities reflected equally in both the artist’s creations and character.
