Red oak, natural stone desk by Afterimage, 2008 and white porcelain moon jars in the background

It is France-Korea year and Paris is buzzing all over with this mysterious and so successful country. In music, golf and design, Koreans have made many of their names famous in the last ten years and so it seemed natural that Musée des Arts Décoratifs, dedicate two large spaces, la Grande Nef and Musée de la Mode to its artists and designers.

Two designers from Hanbok, traditional clothes in the red dresses room

Yun San-hee, “attack of the green horns, necklace, 2009, mother of pearl, platinum, silver, gold and wood

Visiting the exhibition early in the morning with just two other visitors, decorator Jacques Grange and galerist Pierre Passebon was a delight. Curator Karine Lacquemant, who oversaw the installation was happy to see how well Chung Hae-cho’s lacquer bowls looked and how Seo Jeong-hwa’s bench with small table, attracted the eye.

Karine Lacquemant, one of the curators of the show, in front of Chung Hae-cho’s stunning lacquer  bowls. 2015

She mentioned that jewels are not worn in Korea and young designers are very intrepid at creating necklaces and bracelets in silk, silicone, velcro, or any modern sort of fabric. THis is all about very hong artist revisiting their culture and traditions with new material. Furniture and bowls are exhibited in a traditional Korean Hanok house with no doors. The exhibit is the result of perfect mix between Asian tradition and European art de vivre.

Coral necklace by Park Jeong-hye

Once again, the museum enhances all the arts, from jewellery to furniture, to decorative arts. La grand Nef is the main attraction with Wonmin Park (armchairs), Bahk Jong-sun (sofas) and Jeon Yong-il (tea pot) but if you like the « tea ceremony » style the rooms on the left exhibits more classical Asian items, and the gallery on the right is devoted to jewelery and smaller pieces.

Silver tea pots with string handle

In the adjacent Museum of Fashion, traditional ramie, petticoats, kimonos and dresses are revisited by young designers André Kim, Kim Hye-soon among others. The show is fun and full of discoveries and runs until January 3, 2016, 103 rue de Rivoli, Paris.