Q. How do you spend your day?
A. I got a small work space in Paju Book City when I started the new challenge of becoming a craft artist. I spend most of my time there these days. Other than that, I go see exhibitions. If I find a good inspiration, I try to reinterpret it and start making something new.

Q. How has Covid19 affected your lifestyle?
A. Not too much change. I’ve worked in space design for 25 years but I was not particularly active. The last few years have been focused on craft. I’ve participated in several craft exhibitions, but mostly worked in my studio. The time spent away from the world actually became a turning point in my life through which I was able to look back on myself. I spent a long time thinking very hard about what I was doing—making a career change at a later stage in life and becoming an artist who has to constantly battle with oneself.

Q. As a space designer, what do you think home means in a pandemic era, and do you have any space design tips?
A. Home is where you fill what’s lacking to you. A lack of rest, affection, entertainment, and nutrition. The development of modern industries has brought about the emergence of home-like places in the city. It meant that people could go to places offering comfort and special treatment, such as hotels, restaurants, cafes, and movie theaters, to fill their needs instead of their homes, and that was considered reasonable. Then, everything changed instantly. It’s considered unsafe outside your home. But the home is no longer a place prepared to fill what’s lacking to you. In this era where personal trends are global trends, the only place capable of giving you what you need, be it desire or rest, is your home. Home should now be a multiplex platform. Think about what you like, rather than following trends. Don’t hesitate to make small efforts to apply your ideas to your home.

Q. This past year gave us a chance to get to know our own city better because of the travel restrictions. What is Seoul like to you?
A. We have the Hangang River, Mount Namsan in the center, Naksan to the east, Inwangsan to the west, and Bukhansan to the north. I think Seoul is a blessed city as it has a river running across it and mountains that are climbable in half a day. On the other hand, Seoul is in a nutshell fast. Fast trends in social media mean that sometimes stores on a deserted alley can get a second chance at revival. They could also be erased from the memory of people at the same pace. I don’t think there’s any other city where trends come and go so quickly. You can say it’s going through a period of cultural transition. I think now is an important time. The creative sensibility of young people and the balanced sensibility of the older generation should blend well and help make a cultural archive of our era in a systematic way.    
 

The iconic design of select shop ‘T,ODO’ put VOID planning on the world map. Kang was featured in Dutch design magazine < FRAME > for the first time as a Korean space designer. He was nominated for and invited to ‘The Great Indoors Award’ hosted by < FRAME >. 
The Korean pavilion space design at ‘The Revelations: International Biennale of Fine Craft and Creation Fair’ which took place at the Grand Palais museum in Paris in 2015. In celebration of the 130th anniversary of the Korea-France diplomatic relationship, Korea was invited as the country of honor at the exhibition. Kang also chose his work on the shop of Italian fashion brand ‘Romeo Santamaria’ on Via Della Spiga in Milan and the one on ‘Artteas’ tea house in Abu Dhabi as unforgettable space design projects.
 

Q. Until recently, you were involved in the design of exhibition space for craft shows. What got you into craft exhibition in particular?
A. I think I might have an inherent craftsman gene. When I was working on ‘Changdong Seolleongtang’, I worked with tiny wooden beads dyed in five colors that had to cover the 3m-tall convex columns with a 60cm diameter. It took about a month to finish all four. When I was working on ‘Jeonju Onn,’ I used meok(ink) to create a gradation effect on Korean traditional paper hanji which was meant to depict a foggy lakeside in the early morning. I covered the walls of the exhibition booth, totaling 100㎡, with the painted hanjis. The end result was more dreamy than I had expected. These types of projects involving craftworks and the favorable reviews they got led me to continue designing for craft exhibitions.

Q. Where do you find ideas for exhibition space design?
A. The keywords for my design are light, nature, and time. For the latest work on the Theme pavilion, I created a gigantic light source, like the sun, on the ceiling. It’s why many of my craft projects involve light. I try to find subject materials and develop the work process within ‘the time of nature’. I hope my effort will pay off in the form of artworks.

Q. It can be assumed that your experience with craft exhibitions affected your decision to become a craft artist?
A. Definitely. I could naturally foster my interest in craft. To tell the truth, most of the craftworks we see around us are the ones on display. But their true value can be found when they are put to use in real life. The artist’s energy finally speaks to us and we get to communicate with the artifact. As I came in contact with various handicrafts, I realized I wanted to be part of that communication. Imagine it. Your house is filled with your handmade items, and they age beautifully as you use them. Doesn’t the idea make you happy?

Q. What would be the appeal of handcrafting that space design does not have?
A. Technological advancement has replaced many things, but details created out of human sensibility, insight, and sensitivity cannot be replaced. Making things with your hands and seeing the ‘texture’ created as a result of communion between natural materials and human senses give you more than just a visual pleasure. I think that’s the beauty of Korean traditional craft. If you find happiness in an object, you are getting healed. Craft has a healing power.

Q. What is your goal for this year?
A. The biggest plan for 2021 is having a solo exhibition with my craftworks. I have to submit more than 20 pieces, so it won’t be easy. I’ll do my best to impress you with a good show in the latter half of this year. If I may add one more, I would like to get a chance at craft exhibition curation once again.