From next Monday, November 18 to January 31, 2025, the Centro Cultural Coreano hosts in its Han-ul Gallery an exhibition of illustrated albums by the multi-award winning Korean author and illustrator Kim Sang-keun entitled Topo and his friends in the world of wonders.
The exhibition includes a collection of original works, prints, sketches and book models from the author’s four illustrated albums and exclusively illustrations by Kim Sang-keun from his stay in Madrid.
In addition, at the opening ceremony, which will take place this afternoon at 6 pm, Kim Sang-Keun will give a talk to attendees, who can buy When you are worried (Pastel de Luna, 2023) and, in advance El deseo del topo (Pastel de Luna, 2024) and there will be a signing session. The Korean illustrator will share with the public his career, his sources of inspiration and the creative process that gives life to his works. Aimed primarily at an adult audience, although open to all interested parties, the talk will require prior registration through Eventbrite.
The tour of this exhibition offers an immersion in the visual and narrative universe of Kim Sang-keun highlighting his four illustrated albums: When you are worried (Pastel de Luna, 2023), El deseo del topo (Pastel de Luna, 2024), Little Mole’s Summer (Sakyejul, 2022) and Star Fishing (Gaonbit, 2019).
Korean culture has gained a prominent place in the global scene, especially in the musical and audiovisual fields. However, the recent Nobel Prize in Literature awarded to Han Kang on 10 October this year has highlighted the importance of K-literature, surpassing the prominence of other cultural manifestations.
In recent years, Korea has been consolidating itself as a benchmark in the picture album sector, thanks to prominent figures such as Lee Suzy, winner of the Hans Christian Andersen Prize in 2022, and Lee Myung-ae, who won the Golden Apple at the Bratislava Biennial of Illustration (BIB) in 2021.
