Soul of Ten Thousand Years is a series of twelve works by artist Jong-ryang Kim, in which the imagery of glaciers—masses of ice that have endured for millennia—becomes a profound metaphor for cultural and natural fragility. Using najeon (mother-of-pearl inlay), a traditional Korean craft in decline, Kim depicts collapsing icebergs as both a reflection of climate change and a meditation on the fading vitality of heritage.

 

The luminous fragments of mother-of-pearl capture the shifting hues of frozen landscapes, shimmering with life even as they evoke dissolution. In these works, the glacier is not merely a natural form but a living entity whose soul mirrors that of tradition: enduring through centuries, now threatened by inevitable transformation.

 

Critically acclaimed within the art world, the series reached a milestone with the commission of a three-meter-wide panel for permanent installation at the State Guest Lounge of Incheon International Airport Terminal 2. This honor testifies to Jong-ryang Kim’s mastery in merging ancestral craft with contemporary vision, and affirms the universal resonance of his message—where the soul of nature and the spirit of tradition converge in fragile brilliance.

 

 

Soul of Ten Thousand Years #13, 300×124cm, 2024

permanently installed at the State Guest Lounge, Termianl 2,  Incheon Internatinal Airport