If a white crane were choosing a pair of boots, would it opt for knee-high lace-ups or would it balance its claws on yellow tabi stilettos?
Young In Hong has designed a shoe collection with these long-legged birds in mind. Titled ‘White Cranes and Snowfall’, the playful sculptures are made from woven sedges and nestled in a shallow field of pebbles, interweaving references to bird life and endangered craft traditions.
Hong, based in Bristol, visited Korea in the winter of 2023 and witnessed a flock of rare cranes migrating into the demilitarized zone that divides the peninsula. “The once blood-stained DMZ has now become an ecological paradise for the cranes,” she says. “If nature is left alone, it can replenish its life, and if we as humans observe other species more carefully, we can learn something from them that will change the way we live in the world.”
Researchers estimate that in the seventy years since the zone was established, approximately “1,200 plant species, 83 fish species, 51 different mammals and countless birds, insects and microorganisms” have thrived in the area, many of which were previously endangered.
Watching the birds inspired the latest series in Hong’s growing collection of bird shoes. Any references jipsinflat sandals woven from straw and largely worn by peasants and the working class throughout Korea. The shoes were affordable and widely available and wore out quickly – a long day’s walk could ruin a pair – and people across the socio-economic order knew how to make them. Straw is also biodegradable jipsin naturally sustainable.
To learn the craft that has been practiced for generations, Hong began working with Choong Kyung Lee, a straw weaving master from Asan, in 2021. Together they created countless projects, including shoes suitable for a baby elephant, giraffe, kangaroo, heron, gorilla and bear. “For me, working with Lee was a journey to open my eyes to natural fiber weaving, a part of Korea’s history that has not yet been thoroughly written about,” Hong said.
For ‘White Cranes and Snowfall’, the artist brought out specific personalities to inspire each design, rather than treating the birds as faceless entities. When exhibited together, the sculptures become a stand-in for community and gathering—and perhaps a bold yet urgent plea to imagine yourself in someone else’s shoes, even if those shoes belong to a different species. The artist adds:
For me, fictionalizing the collective white cranes, and visualizing them through humorously designed shoes, is to remind us that birds are just like us and express tastes and preferences, also by having individually different characters and personalities.
“White Cranes and Snowfall” is on view through November 7 Separation in Vienna. Two of Hong’s textile works are also on view this month as part of the 7th Changwon Sculpture Biennale, and she is currently preparing for two solo exhibitions, one opening at the Art Sonje Center in May and another at the PKM Gallery in September. View an archive of her works at her website And Instagram.
