By Honorary Reporter Minnath Azeez from Sri Lanka
Photos = Lee Sun-young

The national flag Taegeukgi and Hangeul are two key elements of Korean culture honored this month, with Oct. 3 being National Foundation Day and Oct. 9 Hangeul Day.

Fashion designer Lee Sun-young, who has designed Hanbok for over 32 years, has patented a collection of "Taegeukgi-bok" featuring Hanbok designs inspired by the flag. Based in Seoul, she drew each design by hand and has displayed them at many events, including at a Hanbok fashion show last month at the Los Angeles Korean Festival.

"Taegeukgi Hanbok is not the Hanbok you usually see at road events or on an official stage. Many people who saw my Hanbok cheered and applauded. When I saw elderly Koreans tearing up at the sight of my Taegeukgi-bok, I felt the pride and love they have for our country," the designer said in an Oct. 11 email interview.

The Los Angeles Korean Festival in the Southern California city last month featured a Hanbok fashion show.

Having developed an interest in Hanbok in her early 20s, Lee said that as a tomboy in her youth, she had a starkly different sense of fashion in choosing pants over skirts because they were more comfortable.

"My friends from school were surprised when I said I'd make Hanbok," she said. "I chose Hanbok because I liked its femininity, which is a contrast from what I wore back then. I started making them by doing embroidery and drawing and learning to sew. I always remind myself to never stop learning and still study hard and learn as I go."

Hanbok designer Lee Sun-young has been making the traditional clothing for over 32 years.

Lee's Hanbok designs incorporate Hangeul phrases from the Korean national anthem. The designs are printed using silkscreen printing, a technique in which a stencil is placed over a material and dye is poured over it to imprint the drawings on the fabric. They also feature folk paintings, flowers, mountains and other key elements of traditional Korean culture. 

"When Hallyu was heating up all over the world, I wanted to incorporate Korean emotions and culture into Hanbok," she said.

The Hanbok outfits on the right feature lyrics from the national anthem and those on the left are part of the designer's Taegukgi-bok collection.

Lee has earned quite a few awards over the years like one from Indonesia and the Minister of Unification Prize from Korea. 

To mark Hangeul Day this year, she created outfits inscribed with Hangeul for display at a recent fashion show in Korea.

"Hanbok is a form of art based on the essence of Korea's natural history and putting Korea in Hanbok is my motto. I believe I can do it best because of my love for my nation," she said.

enny0611@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.