Last weekend, I had the pleasure of taking part in a special event celebrating Hangeul Day at Woo Kim Studio in Brussels. The venue was beautiful, and the day brought together markets, workshops, exhibitions, and many people who share a love of Korean culture.
I led a bamboo painting workshop there. Painting bamboo is not only about depicting its form. For the ink painters of East Asia, it was a practice of using the body, the breath, and the brush together to catch the spirit of what they saw. Each time I teach, I am moved to see people still drawn into this ancient art, and this day was no exception.
It was also a joy to meet so many inspiring people and to learn new things about Korea. As a Korean-Japanese artist who has lived in Europe for many years, the experience felt especially meaningful to me.
My heartfelt thanks to everyone who joined my workshop, to the organizers who made the day possible, and to everyone who stopped to talk with me.
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Hanto Ink
Smart Kollective
Woo Kim Studio
Photographer: Chris
Would you like to host an East Asian Ink Painting workshop at your event or space?
Feel free to get in touch! I’m based in the Netherlands, but I’m happy to travel to other countries, depending on my schedule.
E-mail: soonhwa@me.com
About Soonhwa Kang
Soonhwa Kang is a visual artist working primarily with ink, ceramics, and installation. She studied at the Kunstacademie, where she was searching for her materials and artistic voice — until the day she attended a Sumi-e workshop led by an Italian Zen monk. That encounter changed everything.
She went on to study Sumi-e under Yuka Kako, a certified teacher of the International Sumi-e Association, and the practice has deeply shaped her life and work ever since — not as a tradition she reproduces, but as one she carries into her contemporary art practice. Her work lives at the intersection of East Asian ink painting philosophy and heritage, and contemporary expression, across ink, ceramics, and installation.
When people began asking her to share this practice, she hesitated to call herself a teacher — but felt a genuine desire to pass on something beautiful. Not just techniques, but the posture, rhythm, breathing, and the rich history behind East Asian ink painting. She regularly exhibits her work across several cities like in Amsterdam, Haarlem, Eindhoven and Wassenaar. She hosts workshops in diverse settings, including at the University of Amsterdam, own studio, concept store or special event.
www.soonhwakang.com