Kookmin University ORIENTAL CULTURE & DESIGN CENTER(OCDC) is organizing the 2024 DBEW exhibition in collaboration with the ADI Design Museum in Milan to celebrate the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Italy.

At the invitation of the ADI Museum in Milan, which is awarded the prestigious golden Compasso D&Oro, the exhibition will be held during the Salone del Mobile International Furniture Design Fair and Milan Design Week.
The exhibition will be on display at the ADI Museum from April 16 to May 5, including the Salone del Mobile International Furniture Design Fair and Milan Design Week. Under DBEW's direction "Design Beyond East and West", this year's theme is "Ottchil Furniture and Design".

"By applying Ottchil, a global traditional cultural technology, to everyday functional furniture, the exhibition aims to showcase designs that realize a sustainable future in line with the characteristics of our living culture and spread the value of contemporary living design that transcends time and space. Through the entire process of collaborating with designers and crafts masters under the auspices of the Oriental Culture and Design Center (OCDC), we hope to present a new way of design collaboration and showcase Ottchil as a sustainable material for modern furniture functions and Korean aesthetics as a design that transcends East and West," said Professor Kyungran Choi, curator of the exhibition.

Ottchil, a timeless material

Ottchil is a traditional Korean coating made from the purified sap of the sumac tree, and is an antiseptic, heat-resistant material with no chemical additives. By combining Korean and Italian design with Ottchil, a scientifically proven healthy and sustainable material, we aim to discover the future from tradition by introducing living products.

Furniture, an expression of our lives

The incorporation of Ottchil, a natural material, into the newly conceived and designed furniture for the DBEW exhibition is noteworthy. The fusion of modern and traditional processing methods demonstrates an innovation that extends the scope of Ottchil, which was once used for small items, to large furniture. The colorful colors of the Ottchil are both traditional and modern. The exhibition will feature Ottchil furniture that pays homage to the world-renowned Italian designer Alessandro Mendini, who has been collaborating with Korean design organizations for over 20 years, and will introduce a new collaboration with the Oriental Culture and Design Institute by Stefano Giovannoni, who is known for his participation in various design exhibitions such as the Gwangju Design Biennale and his collaboration with the Korean design industry.

The exhibition is co-organized by the Oriental Culture and Design Center (OCDC), ADI Design Museum, and Gwangju Design Biennale, with the collaboration of the Embassies of Italy and Korea, the Italian Cultural Institute in Korea, and the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, and is supported by Hanjin, Korean Air, and Persis.