ONJIUM is an institute for research into traditional Korean culture. Founded in 2013 in affiliation with the Hwadong Culture Foundation, ONJIUM keeps tradition alive by upholding the values and spirit of traditional Korean culture and adapts it for modern
society.
The three studios of ONJIUM research and create clothing, foods, and housing inspired by tradition and educate the public on traditional culture and its potential in modern society.
Clothing Studio, Culinary Studio, and Housing Studio!
The research fellows at each studio produce a wide array of new products so that the elegant traditional culture of Korea can inform modern living and make life more enjoyable for all. Their creations are the result of painstaking
research and cooperation.
Making modern things more dignified by taking inspiration from the past, and leaving them as heritage for tomorrow.
This is ONJIUM’s mission.
ONJIUM started by asking, “What uniquely Korean things remain today for the Koreans?”
Committed to keeping Korean tradition alive and connecting it to modern society, ONJIUM has effectively passed on the best of Korean culture by reflecting on the wisdom and philosophy of the Koreans long ago embodied in traditional
clothing, cuisine, and residential architecture.
Going a step further, ONJIUM has taken risks and advanced. It dreams of a renaissance in traditional culture and harmony between the past and modernity for the benefit of society today and for posterity.
ONJIUM cultivates a new class of artisans who are extremely knowledgeable of theory, skilled in craftsmanship, and have tremendous spirit. This is because ONJIUM believes that the results of researches and performances by
such accomplished people will make traditional Korean culture known to the world and have great positive impact on it.
The door to ONJIUM is always open to those who share our beliefs.
Participated in the Arumjigi exhibition <GO GO BAEK SEO : ba-ji, Korean traditional pants>
Participated in the Arumjigi’s <Palace Maintenance> project to produce a ‘bo-ryo’ (a cotton mattress) used
in Jeukjodang Hall in Deoksugung Palace
Published Onjium's culinary book <Chan>
Developed Korean style sandwich collaborating with Tartine bakery
Designed Business Training Institute in Samcheong-dong, Seoul
Participated in an Arumjigi project to improve lighting of Huijeongdang hall and Daejojeon hall of Changdeokgung
Participated in the Arumjigi exhibition Ancestral Rites for Modern Times
Participated in an Arumjigi project to improve lighting of Huijeongdang hall and Daejojeon hall of Changdeokgung
Participated in the exhibition Couture Korea at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco with traditional clothes
Research fellows participated in culinary residency programs in France and Korea
Participated in the Arumjigi exhibition Shade from the Sun
Designed and restored Jo Hong-je’s birthplace and shrine in Haman, Gyeongsangnam-do Province
Participated in the Arumjigi exhibition Jeogori, and Stories about Materials Produced muryeomja (traditional curtains) for an Arumjigi project to restore household fixtures at royal palaces.
Published Onjium’s Cookbook: Selected Recipes for Each Season, funded by the Korea Food Promotion Institute
Designed Hanok in Donuimoon Museum Village in Seoul and Meditation Hall of Buseoksa Temple in Gyeongsangbuk-do Province
Participated in the exhibition Korea Now at the Decorative Arts Museum in Paris in celebration of 130 years of diplomatic ties between Korea and France
articipated in the Hanseong Baekje Cultural Festival with traditional dishes of Baekje
CNN’s Talk Asia introduces Korean food and ONJIUM Culinary Studio
Appeared on JTBC’s program Let’s Go to Island
Participated in Arumjigi exhibition Traditional Alcoholic Beverages with Side Dishes
Participated in the exhibition A Homage to Korean Architecture-Wisdom of the Earth at Leeum Samsung Museum of Art Helped design and build the Korean Heritage Room at the Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh, USA
Developed traditional Korean materials funded by the Hanbok Advancement Center
Participated in the Arumjigi exhibition Doors: Boundaries of Communication
Designed the Korean Royal Silk Flower Museum in Gyeongsangnam-do Province and
restored Sodaeheon and Hoyeonjae’s old house in Daejeon.
Participated in the Arumjigi exhibition Po, the Seonbi Spirit in Clothing
Constructed a traditional Korean house in the Arumjigi company building
Began research into traditional architecture
Began research into traditional Korean cuisine
Began research into traditional Korean clothing
Yun Gyun S. Hong
Hyo Sook Cho, Hae Kyung Chung, Bong Ryol Kim, Dong Youb Shin, Min Ja Chung
Jeongin Kathryn Hong
Hye Kyung Kang, Bon hee Gu, Ji Soo Im, Seo Ah Choi, Se Hee Park
Kyoung Sun Lee, Eun Mi Jeong, Kyung A Lee, Yun Hwa Lee, Min Jeon
Eun Hee Cho, Sung Bae Park, Soo Jeong Sim, Young Ju Lee, Seung Rib Lee, Won Shik Chung, Il Han Ryu, Yu Jung Kim, Kyoung In Lee, Dae Young Kim, Jae Won Choi
Chae Won Park, Jai Oh Lee
In this studio, artisans take inspiration from the wisdom, beauty, and philosophy of old Korea embodied in traditional clothes, and study modern materials and techniques to create clothing for modern society.
Clothing Studio explores new possibilities for Korean clothing amid today’s constantly changing trends - from reproduction of traditional clothes that were forgotten to collaboration with modern fashion designers.
Inquiries to
Clothing Studio
T.
02-725-6611
The fellows at Culinary Studio study old recipes passed down for generations in different regions of the country.
Using modern ingredients in historical recipes brings out traditional tastes and elegance of the past for the modern table.
The mission of Culinary Studio is to combine seasonal ingredients and unique regional tastes and revive traditional foods for modern dining.
Inquiries to
Culinary Studio
T.
02-725-6610
The fellows of Housing Studio study not only hanok but Korean architecture and other architecture in general.
In collaboration with artisans of hanok, contemporary architects, and experts in appropriate fields, the Studio gains deep insight into the thinking and wisdom of the Koreans long ago, as embodied in traditional architecture.
Creating a space where old Korea’s philosophy and wisdom about everyday life inform modern life.
Go to
Housing Studio
Inquiries to
Housing Studio
T.
02-725-6612
ONJIUM fellows working at the Clothing, Culinary, and Housing studios share their philosophies and stories about what they do. Let’s listen to stories of fellows who are creating clothing, great cuisine, and residential architecture at ONJIUM, in connection with other fields while sharing talent and inspiration.
ONJIUM fellows working at the Clothing, Culinary, and Housing studios share their philosophies and stories about what they do. Let’s listen to stories of fellows who are creating clothing, great cuisine, and residential architecture at ONJIUM, in connection with other fields while sharing talent and inspiration.
In Korean, ‘ON’ as a noun means ‘one hundred, all’ and as a verb means ‘remains intact with its essential quality unchanged; right and proper without any corruption’. “JIUM’ means ‘make, carry on, and understand each other.’
All told, ONJIUM essentially means ‘create in the right way’. It represents commitment to creating everyday life today and leaving it as heritage for tomorrow based on the clothing, cuisine, and residential
architecture of the past.
ONJIUM has three studios; Clothing Studio where clothes are made, Culinary Studio where tastes are explored, and Housing Studio where houses are designed.
At each of these three studios, tradition is recreated in a way that is suitable for the modern sensibility and lifestyle.
Diverse projects are carried out so that the findings of the studies can be left as heritage, as culture for the future.
Also, ONJIUM strongly encourages as many citizens possible to join ONJIUM programs through diverse PR efforts such as exhibitions, broadcasting, publishing, and participation in and organizing events.
ONJIUM aspires to produce artisans suited to a new era. ONJIUM strives to discover new talents and train them as experts with equal depth in theory, craftsmanship, and knowledge of art and literature, in other words, experts with not only dexterity of hand but spirit embodied in their work to shape the future of Korean culture.
Culinary Studio studies traditional Korean food and shares its tastes with others. Artisans of Culinary Studio are titled ‘research fellows’ rather than chefs or cooks. They study old documents and books to reproduce dishes from far back in time. They travel all over Korea with a TV broadcasting team to discover original local recipes handed down for generations and introduce them to the public through the media. They also publish their research findings so that as many people as possible can see and share the beauty and elegance of Korean food. Beyond conducting research on tastes in the past, the fellows of this studio enable the public to enjoy new foods inspired by tradition.
Clothing Studio embodies and carries on clothes of old Korea and recreates them in modernized forms for special events as well as everyday living. Beyond restoring and reproducing traditional materials that have disappeared, the Studio engages in many efforts including collaboration with fabric markets and designers and disseminating the findings of such collaboration, and introduces the beauty and elegance of hanbok, not only traditional clothes but modernized hanbok, through exhibitions, in order to create new culture. Clothing Studio not only makes clothes; it creates culture and sets new trends.
ONJIUM Housing Studio designs hanok suited to modern life after researching traditional architecture, analyzing differences between the lifestyle of the past and the present, and then making appropriate changes to traditional architecture. It built the Arumjigi Building in Tongui-dong and the Korean Heritage Room at the Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh, USA. Also, in an effort to restore and reinterpret elements of traditional architecture which disappeared or are becoming forgotten, the Studio participated in the exhibitions Doors: Boundaries of Communication and Shade from the Sun hosted by Arumjigi.