Published : Dec. 7, 2014 - 20:30
Han Sung Motor CEO Ulf Ausprung, students and their mentors pose after the opening ceremony of the Dream Gream year-end exhibition on Thursday at Ara Art Center in Insa-dong, Seoul. (Han Sung Motor)
Han Sung Motor, the largest dealer of Mercedes-Benz cars in Korea, is holding a year-end exhibition for its Dream Gream Project, a scholarship program that aims to support school students with artistic talent.
The annual event, celebrating its third anniversary this year, features art works, including portraits, furniture and calligraphy paintings, created by 20 elementary, middle and high school students over the past year in partnership with young artists.
The exhibition will be held through Dec. 9 at Ara Art Center in Insa-dong, Seoul, and is scheduled to tour major subway stations in the coming weeks.
Hundreds of people, including the Dream Gream students, their parents and mentors attended the opening ceremony Thursday.
Other guests included Han Sung Motor CEO Ulf Ausprung and company officials, along with representatives of the Korea Mecenat Association and the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture ― the two crucial partners for the program.
“One significant aspect of the program this year is that the students worked on public art projects for social purposes,” Ausprung said in his opening remarks.
“The program has further developed to reach out to society.”
The company launched the Dream Gream Project in 2012 as part of its enhanced corporate social responsibility program supporting students from underprivileged families. After the soft-landing period in the first two years, the program has started focusing more on sharing with society.
The students joined hands with Seoul Art Space Shindang, an underground arcade of young artists, to refurbish a traditional market and improve a shelter for the merchants.
They also visited several welfare facilities such as Chung-Ang University Hospital to donate their artworks, including portraits of patients and elderly citizens there.
“I feel great about displaying our works that we have created over the year,” said Chung Da-un, a participating student. “I’ll continue to work to become a top artist in Korea.”
Han Sung Motor supports up to 20 students every year for their art classes and cultural activities. Its employees, along with college art majors, have also volunteered to become mentors, called “ambassadors,” for the students.
“It’s remarkable to see how talented the students are in diverse fields of art,” the CEO said. “We will continue to support the students and developing the program further.”
By Lee Ji-yoon (
jylee@heraldcorp.com)