Artist Kim Tae-yeon

It is the touch of Midas. Sapsido artist Kim Tae-yeon turns trash into living beings in no time.

She is holding a solo exhibition, ‘Sapsido, One Day Among Countless Days,’ presenting one-of-a-kind framed works made with marine debris and items collected from the sea such as shells, discarded rope, and driftwood.

This exhibition is an invited solo show selected by the Boryeong Cultural Center, and it carries added significance as a special presentation that translates stories of the region’s nature, environment, and life into art.

It goes beyond simple upcycling, artistically embodying the sea’s time and memory and the message of the environment. The works use actual derelict fishing gear and marine waste, seashells, and driftwood washed ashore, and the artist completed them through long hours of hand-weaving and attaching each element one by one.

In particular, the exhibition also carries the intention of sharing the beauty of Sapsido, an island in Boryeong, South Chungcheong Province, and the value of the sea. The artist distilled emotions received from Sapsido’s nature and waters into the works and sought to draw attention to the vanishing marine environment.

Family was what first tied artist Kim Tae-yeon to Sapsido.

While traveling back and forth to help her older sister, who married into Sapsido and has lived there for more than 40 years, the artist encountered a landscape where marine trash drifting in coexisted with beautiful nature. The scene left a deep impression and became a catalyst for discovering new beauty within discarded things.

Afterward, the artist walked Sapsido’s beaches to collect seashells, driftwood, and discarded rope, and through a lengthy process of hand-weaving and refining, she rebirthed them as artworks. Each piece contains the sea’s time, the island’s memories, and traces of life just as they are.

Kim Tae-yeon said, “I wanted to show that even discarded things can become beauty,” and added, “Through the works, I hope people will look at the sea anew and together feel Sapsido’s landscapes and time, as well as the precious values within them.”

A Sapsido guesthouse operated by artist Kim Tae-yeon. Her works are tucked away throughout the place

The venue will also display photographs capturing the time and memory of the sea, alongside framed object works in diverse forms.

This special exhibition, which brings together environment, art, and the story of the region, is expected to deliver a deep resonance to visitors.