Kang Ik-joong's monumental 'Hangeul Wall' unveiled at Korean Cultural Center New York

A 22-meter high wall with 20,000 colorful blocks of Korean letters, or Hangeul, was unveiled Wednesday at the newly opened Korean Cultural Center New York, on E. 32nd Street in Manhattan. The monumental work was created by New York-based artist Kang Ik-joong, known for his iconic works of Hangeul blocks.

Kang’s installation “Hangeul Wall: Things I Love to Talk About” was created in collaboration with participants from more than 50 countries around the world. Some 7,000 submissions were received from May to June via a dedicated website for the project, of which 1,000 were selected for the installation. The website had more than 8.2 million visits, according to the cultural center.

“'Hangeul Wall' is not a wall of despair that divides us and neighbors – but a wall of hope that connects east and west, and south and north. The blocks collected here all contain positive messages such as 'hometown,' 'mother,' 'longing' and 'wish,'” Kang told The Korea Herald on Thursday. “I believe the world we are living is still a place of hope. Hopefully, 'Hangeul Wall' will lead people to think about the future and look back on the past.”

Coinciding with the unveiling of “Hangeul Wall” is the opening of Kang’s retrospective “We are Connected,” also at the center. The exhibition features Kang’s iconic works such as his early work “Throw Everything Together and Add” from the collection of the Whitney Museum, which is being shown to the public 30 years after the museum’s acquisition.

Another installation work of 1,392 glazed porcelain moon jars, titled “1392 Moon Jar” on loan from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is laid on the floor in circles. The number 1,392 intriguingly aligns with the year of the founding of Joseon, the kingdom known for producing the finest white porcelain moon jars. The retrospective will run through Nov. 7.

The Korean Cultural Center New York opened its new building in June, 14 years after Korea's Culture Ministry acquired the land next to Manhattan's Koreatown.

The building houses the Korean Cultural Center, the Korea Tourism Organization, the Korea Creative Content Agency and the King Sejong Institute. After Los Angeles, Shanghai, Tokyo, Beijing and Paris, it is the sixth such city where these institutions promoting Korean culture ar­­e all located within one building.

The center is closed on Mondays and Sundays.