Maritime Museum Opens Exhibition 'Kai: Traces of Korea and Japan in Shells'
Creatrip Team
3 months ago
To mark 60 years of normalized Korea-Japan relations, the National Maritime Museum in South Korea will host a special exhibition, "Shells, Kai (かい): Traces of Korea and Japan in Shells," from Dec 2 to Mar 2. The show, organized with 10 Korean and 6 Japanese institutions, explores thousands of years of maritime exchange using shells as a medium—highlighting their roles as food, tools, jewelry, and art. Notable items include a shell mask from the Dongsam-dong shell midden (first return display to Busan), shell ornaments from Japan’s Hirota site (designated Important Cultural Property), and a shell mask from the Ataka shell midden. The exhibition is presented in four parts—media art introduction, first encounters between humans and shells, everyday uses, and artistic extensions like mother-of-pearl craft—plus hands-on sections to evoke shared maritime histories and cultural bonds. (Kai (かい): Japanese word for shell, shellfish, or shell)
