One Artist’s Audacious Pursuit of Traditional Korean Hanji

Korea has a saying, “Good silk lasts 100 years, good hanji lasts 1,000 years.” Hanji, a special paper, is made through a complex, centuries-old process that using paper mulberry bark. Aimee Lee, a Korean-American artist, received a Fulbright fellowship to learn the craft in Korea and learned from master hanji-maker Jang Seong-woo. Her perseverance, audacity and aptness for hanji impressed him so much that he now refers to Lee as a colleague. Today, she’s the leading hanji maker and weaver in the US and has dedicated her career to teaching others these ancient Korean practices.