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Art protects art
8 out of 10
artists are shut out by banks
354
loans extended to fellow artists
95%
repayment rate — trust comes full circle
~KRW 140M
interest saved vs. predatory rates
Until the next exhibition, the next performance. For artists, income gaps are an unavoidable reality. For fellow artists forced into predatory loans just to afford paint, canvas, and studio rent, proceeds from this artwork become the Seed Fund — extending a fair hand at fair rates.
Voices of fellow artists
“The memory of going hungry for three days, alone, so my children wouldn't know.”
— 50s, theater artist
“I've been putting off urgent dental treatment because I can't afford it. I should be seeing a doctor regularly, but enduring instead of going has become a habit.”
— 50s, actor
“I kept delaying ear treatment because I had no money, and the symptoms in both ears worsened.”
— 30s, musician
“I couldn't pay my hospitalized mother's bills, so we had to delay her discharge, and she had to give up tests and treatment she needed.”
— 50s, actor/broadcaster
“Because of money troubles I had nowhere to go — drifting between gosiwon rooms and rehearsal studios, and for a while sleeping rough.”
— 30s, musician
“Because of unpaid rent, my collective was forced to vacate our shared workspace and home. Neither bank loans nor artist loans could help.”
— 50s, actor
“Without money, life collapses — and creating art? Out of the question.”
— 50s, artist
“It's painful that solving this month's money problems has to come before the work itself. As an artist, I can only earn well when the work succeeds — yet I have to chase odd jobs every month instead. It feels like being trapped in a vicious cycle.”
— 40s, musician
“Debt collection calls disrupted my rehearsals and performances, and the psychological burden made every day painful and the next day frightening.”
— 40s, theater artist
“Many times the loan payments looming each month forced me to step away from performing and focus on part-time work.”
— 50s, actor
“Sleeping less than four hours a night, juggling part-time jobs and theater — but the more I performed, the more debt piled up. Eventually I decided to quit performing.”
— 30s, actor
“When things were hardest, I couldn't even attend close friends' weddings or funerals — and as a result, relationships were severed.”
— 50s, actor/broadcaster
“When I said I was a stage actor, the loan officer called me "unemployed."”
— 50s, actor
“The shame and severed friendships that came with borrowing from people I knew, the pressure of failing to pay it back, the helplessness.”
— 50s, cartoonist/visual artist
“Even with programs meant for low-income citizens, I feel shame when I can't produce enough documentation simply because I'm an artist.”
— 30s, film/broadcasting professional
68 artworks sold, each becoming a seed of solidarity
One artwork becomes the oxygen that keeps a fellow artist creating.
Sales proceeds go to the artist mutual-aid fund.
Shelter Embracing Light
Lee Yuji
About the Artist
Lee Yuji is a painter who unfolds the landscapes of deep inner consciousness and the sentiments of longing through painting. After graduating from the Department of Western Painting at Suwon University, she completed her M.A. at Kookmin University. Her many solo exhibitions include 〈Where Wishes Linger and Rise Again〉 at Art Boda Gallery (2025), 〈Karma Dice〉 at Seoun Gallery in Ganghwa's Jeondeungsa Temple (2025), 〈Party of Wishes〉 at The Squares Gallery (2024), and 〈Landscape of the Abyss〉 at Sai Art Document (2017). She received the Excellence Award at the 〈Artist of Tomorrow〉 competition by the Gyeomjae Jeong Seon Museum of Art (2024). Her works are held in the collections of the Gyeomjae Jeong Seon Museum of Art, the Seoul Culture Headquarters Museum, and the Hana Bank Art Bank.
Artist Statement
My work speaks of the landscape of sanctuary. The Sanctuary of Yearning series carries the feelings of remembrance, hope, and purification. I see yearning (念願) as a latent energy, a primal force that draws moments of healing toward us, and I explore this force through the language of painting. I have named the journey of accumulating good karma through the power of yearning — overcoming and reaching a kind of release — "Karmadise." The wishes within the heart linger in the sanctuary of yearning, are purified there, and turn once again toward the light. I gather time of recovery into painting, and when one passes through that place and returns to life, a new breath is gained. I express a space of protection where one can quietly catch one's breath amid uncertain, trembling emotions and longings yet to be reached. The rhythm of repeating shapes and flowing lines visualizes minute tremors of hope within inner chaos — what I call a "shamanic sanctuary." Beyond mere expression, it carries a sacred force that releases the inner self and revives vitality. The materials in the work are composed as metaphorical symbols of healing. Tangled thread appears as healing thread that stitches up wounds rooted in memories of my late father; layered brushstrokes reflect accumulated memory and the process of practice. Drawing on Didier Anzieu's concept of the "psychic envelope," I sought to embody an inner protective skin that wraps around the self. Combining tangles of thread with shamanic symbols, my work visualizes the power held within forms of belief, and the canvas transforms into a refined sacred object that filters out negative energies. Using oil paint and fluorescent pigment, I create a luminous visual paradise that glows under light, depicting ideal worlds such as "the sanctuary of yearning," "protective trees," and "lucid dreams." For me, art is a single thread of light in a dark world, and life itself. As a landscape of the unconscious and a space of protection, I hope it eases anxious psyches and brings a moment when everyone can breathe more freely.
Key Career Highlights
Solo Exhibitions
2025 <Where Wishes Linger and Rise Again>, Lee Yuji Invitational Solo Exhibition, Art Boda Gallery, Seoul
2025 <Karma Dice>, Ganghwa Jeondeungsa Museoljeon Seoun Gallery Competition Selected, Seoun Gallery, Incheon
2024 <Party of Wishes>, Lee Yuji Invitational Solo Exhibition, The Squares Gallery, Seoul
2024 <Dreamer's Paradise>, Eunpyeong Cultural Foundation Sai Competition Selected, Eunpyeong Cultural Foundation, Seoul
2017 <Landscape of the Abyss>, Sai Art Document Competition Selected, Sai Art Document, Seoul
Group Exhibitions
2026 <Anew Beyond: Like Starting Again>, Samwon Gallery, Seoul
2025 <Sumunjang Art Fair 2>, Suwon Cultural Foundation, 111CM, Suwon
2025 Roha Gallery Group Small Works, Seoul
2025 Inspired Fair SETEC, Seoul
2025 <Exploring Life> Yungyeom & Lee Yuji 2-Person Exhibition, GG2 Gallery, Seoul
2025 BANK Art Fair, SETEC, Seoul
2025 Yeongwon Art Fair, Yeongdo C Gallery / AR Gallery, Seoul
2025 <Galleries Art Fair Suwon: Sumunjang Art Fair>, Suwon Cultural Foundation, Suwon
2025 <0 Won Art Fair>, 0 Degrees Gallery / AR Gallery, Seoul
2025 <BANK Art Fair>, Fairmont Ambassador, Seoul
2025 <The Art of Letting Go>, C-Muse Project, Space Atel, Seoul
2024 <Small Museum>, Lee Miyeon & Lee Yuji 2-Person Exhibition, Suwon Cultural Foundation, Starfield Small Museum, Suwon
2024 <Chuncheon Art Island: Korea and India>, Chuncheon Cultural Foundation, Nami Island Pyeonghwarang Gallery, Chuncheon
2024 <Sumunjang Art Fair PART 2>, Suwon Cultural Foundation, 111CM, Suwon
2024 <Art Record Cheongju>, Geu-eotteon, Chungbuk Cultural Foundation, Culture Manufacturing Plant, Cheongju
2024 <YOUTH> Group Exhibition, Whitestone Gallery, Seoul
2024 <Sumunjang O! Galleries Art Fair IN Suwon>, Suwon Cultural Foundation, Suwon Convention Center, Suwon
2024 <Jeju International Art Fair>, Jeju Convention Center, Jeju
2024 <Weekly K-Auction>, K Auction, Seoul
2024 <Light and Dark> Neonji & Lee Yuji 2-Person Exhibition, Art Boda Gallery, Seoul
2023 <Gallery Siseon> Lee Yuji & Lee Jeongmin 2-Person Exhibition, Curated by Seoul National University Emeritus Professor Kim Jeonghee, GS Siseon, Seoul
2022 <Daydream: A Dream Dreamt at Noon> Kim Gitae, Lee Yuji, Jang Soyeon 3-Person Exhibition, Informel Seongsu, Seoul
2022 <Cheonggi Iljeon> Jeju Youth Day, Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Office 1st Building, Jeju
2021 <Gwanin Culture Village>, Gwanin (former) Agricultural Cooperative Fertilizer Warehouse, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Gwanin Cultural Regeneration Research Society, Pocheon
2021 <Wonderful Days for All>, Seoul Citizen University, Seoul
2021 <Eulji Art Fair Prize>, Jung-gu Cultural Foundation, Eulji Twin Tower, Seoul
2020 <Eulji Art Fair Prize>, Jung-gu Cultural Foundation, Eulji Twin Tower, Seoul
2020 <A1 Emerging Youth Artist>, Geumboseong Art Center, Seoul
2019 <Hanseong Baekje Songpa Art Festival>, Yesong Museum of Art, Seoul
2019 <Nut Gallery Selected Artist Special Exhibition>, Nut Gallery, Seoul
2018 <From Everyone to Here>, 3-Person Exhibition, Curated by Lee Juhee, Art Space Et, Seoul
2018 <ASYAAF Part 1>, DDP, Seoul
2018 <Seodaemun Inn Art Fair>, Seodaemun Inn, 7 Picture, Seoul
2018 <3rd A1 Emerging Artist>, Geumboseong Art Center, Seoul
2017 <First Collection Experience>, Ecorak Gallery, Seoul
2017 <ASYAAF Part 2>, DDP, Seoul
2017 <1st Track - Healing> Yungyeom & Lee Yuji 2-Person Exhibition, Seojeong Art Center, Seoul
2016 <Gaze of the Future> Seojeong Art Center Emerging Artist Selected Exhibition, Seojeong Art Center, Seoul
2016 <5th Spielplatzhan Competition> Lee Yuji & Ju Sang-eon 2-Person Exhibition, Spielplatzhan Gallery, Seoul
2016 <ASYAAF Part 2>, DDP, Seoul
2015 <GIAF Gwanghwamun Art Festival Young Artist> Competition Selected, Sejong Museum of Art, Seoul
2015 <Facing Anxiety> M.A. Thesis Relay Solo Exhibition, Kookmin Art Gallery, Seoul
2015 <Exchange Stroke Painting>, Kwaeyeonjae Museum of Art, Yeongwol, Gangwon-do
2014 <Dawn Phenomenon>, Pyeongchang-dong Yeonwoo Gallery, Seoul
2014 <ASYAAF Part 2>, Former Seoul Station, Seoul
2013 <Movement Exhibition> Suwon University Western Painting Graduation Exhibition, Iz Gallery, Seoul
Awards
2024 <Artist of Tomorrow> Gyeomjae Jeong Seon Competition Selected, Excellence Award, Gyeomjae Jeong Seon Museum of Art, Seoul
2024 <JDC Jeju Art Competition>, Encouragement Award, Jeju Gallery Association, JDC, Jeju
2022 <4th Seoul-ro Media Canvas>, Flat Work Award, Seoul-ro Media Canvas, Manri-dong Square, Seoul
2020 <Art Prize Gangnam>, Excellence Award, Art Prize Gangnam, Gangnam Cultural Foundation, Seoul
2016 <Summer Saengsaek Exhibition> Gasong Art Award Competition Selected, Collaboration Category, Gong Art Space, Seoul
2016 <1st Seoriful ART for ART>, Special Selection, Yujung Art Center, Seoul
2015 <14th Hanseong Baekje Art Award>, Special Selection, Yesong Museum of Art, Seoul
2015 <12th Hanseong Baekje Art Award>, Special Selection, Yesong Museum of Art, Seoul
2013 <15th Danwon Art Festival>, Special Selection, Danwon Museum of Art, Seoul
Art Sponsorship Program
2025 Samwon Art Sponsorship 8th Cohort, Samwon Paper, Samwon Gallery, Seoul
Collections
2024 Gyeomjae Jeong Seon Museum of Art, "Self Bloomed in Wetland, Flower of the Abyss"
2020 Seoul Culture Headquarters Museum, "Forest of the Abyss 2"
2016 Hana Bank Art Bank, "Red Room"
and fair and private collector collections
Arts Education
2025 Korea Arts & Culture Education Service 'Healing Like Spring' Dementia Senior Participatory Teaching Artist, Project C, Eunpyeong-gu Naereul Geonneoseo Library, Seoul
Workshops
2025 <Mind Pharmacy - Suwon Festival> Oct 25, 'Sacred Object Workshop of Wishes', Suwon
2025 <Myeongdong Meal - One Bite of Art> Oct 22, 'Bibbidi Bobbidi' Art Peddler Workshop, Seoul
Residency
2026 Chuncheon Art Village 4th Cohort, Chuncheon Cultural Foundation, Chuncheon, Gangwon-do
Related materials
Magazine
Karmadise, Where Good Karma Gathers: Lee Yuji's Shelter of Wishes
Lee Yuji names her practice *Karmadise* — karma plus paradise. Resting places where wishes take root, light passing through forest branches.
Apr 20, 2026 · Seed Art Festival
SAF Painters — From Korean Painting to Abstraction
The 40+ painters of SAF 2026, read across six lineages — from Reality and Utterance founders to KAIST-trained painters, Brussels sculpture MFAs, and Goryeo-Buddhist-painting masters.
Apr 20, 2026 · Seed Art Festival
Contemporary Art Pricing — Artist, Medium, Size, Date: 4 Factors of Korean Art Market
“Is this price fair?” The question every buyer asks. To answer it you need to understand the four forces that set art prices: artist, medium, size, and date.
May 2, 2026 · Seed Art FestivalOther works by Lee Yuji
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Two beginnings made by one piece
- For you —
- One-of-a-kind in the world
- For the artist —
- the next month of their practice
- For a fellow artist —
- a new ₩3,000,000 path of low-interest support
354 artists have walked this path of recovery; 95% returned to open it for the next.