Home > Business > Finance

Hana holds annual Artverse awards to celebrate artists with developmental disabilities

Published: 17 Apr. 2025, 16:21 Updated: 17 Apr. 2025, 19:58

SHIN MIN-HEE
[email protected]

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo, center, poses with the grand prize winners of this year's Hana Artverse competition on April 17; Jo Tae-sung, far left, and Lee Jae-hyung. [HANA FINANCIAL GROUP]

Hana Financial Group held the award ceremony for its Hana Artverse competition on Thursday, the company said the same day.

The annual competition celebrates artists with developmental disabilities and is held to mark Korea’s Day of Persons with Disabilities, which falls annually on April 20.

This year’s Hana Artverse, in its fourth edition, took place from Dec. 13 last year for roughly two months and received artwork submissions on any topic. There were 877 applicants, a one-and-a-half-fold increase from last year.

Awards went to 30 artists — 21 adults and nine teenagers and children. They will receive 10.6 million won ($7,470) in total and three of the adult winners will be offered a chance to intern at Springshine, an art creation studio for people with developmental disabilities.

The grand prize winner for the adult category was artist Jo Tae-sung with “ZOO 2023,” while the winner of the teenager and children category was Lee Jae-hyung with “Happy Museum." Their works will be on view at the Hana Bank main branch in Jung District, central Seoul, until Friday.

Afterward, they will be displayed in a special exhibition at the H.art1 cultural complex in Jung District, central Seoul, which is operated by Hana Financial Group, from April 29 to May 24.

The award-winning pieces will also be available to see at the Art Busan 2025 art fair from May 8 to 11.

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [[email protected]]