Sharing Hearts with Children through Art... Samsung Welfare Foundation and Seoul Children's Hospital Hold Exhibition

Welfare Foundation and Children's Hospital Host, Cultural Foundation and Public Interest Foundation Support
Introducing 106 Works by 61 Children and 45 Families
12 Selected Works to Be Made into Next Year's Calendar and Distributed

The Samsung Welfare Foundation and Seoul Metropolitan Children’s Hospital announced on the 9th that they will jointly hold the exhibition "Picture Conversations Sharing Hearts with Children" from the 7th to the 26th on the first floor of the Samsung Children’s Education and Culture Center. This is a corporate social responsibility (CSR) activity co-hosted by the Samsung Welfare Foundation and the Children’s Hospital, and sponsored by the Samsung Culture Foundation and Samsung Life Public Welfare Foundation. The first floor of the Samsung Children’s Education and Culture Center is a space where children’s picture books can be viewed. It regularly hosts the Leeum Museum of Art’s educational program "Bookium," making it a frequently visited place for family visitors.

The exhibition displays a total of 106 works, including 61 pieces by preschool children, elementary, middle, and high school students, and 45 family works, along with heartfelt messages. It features activities from the past year by children and families who participated in the "Sangsang Apple Art Studio" art therapy program conducted by the Children’s Hospital Art Therapy Room since 2011.

The exhibition venue on the opening day of the 'Picture Conversation Sharing Hearts with Children' exhibition on the 7th. From the left, Seunghwan Han, CEO of Samsung Life Public Welfare Foundation; Munhyung Ryu, CEO of Samsung Culture Foundation; Min Nam, Director of Seoul Metropolitan Children's Hospital; Sungwon Kim, CEO of Samsung Welfare Foundation.
[Photo by Samsung Welfare Foundation]

This year’s exhibition showcases not only paintings expressing the thoughts, emotions, and inner worlds of children who participated in the art therapy program but also pictures and messages created by families supporting their children together.

The mother of a child who drew "Beloved Watermelon, Tanghulu, Ice Cream" responded by painting a picture of laughing and enjoying time with her child. In the painting, she wrote the message: "I am happy to see the beauty and value of the world you look at through your drawings, and following your gaze, even the weary yesterday approaches as a vivid today, adding value to the day."

Children's drawing by DH titled 'Pizza with My SOUL'.
[Photo by Samsung Welfare Foundation]

The family of a child who painted "A Heart Garden Blooming with Roses and Lilies" also included a message in their artwork.

They wrote, "Following you drawing flowers, I tried drawing flowers too, and I could feel your heart through your painting... I hope you won’t be afraid to take a step toward the world, remembering that amazing and fun things unfold ahead. I pray you will have the courage to challenge yourself. And even if you fall and fail while trying, don’t be discouraged but shake it off and grow into a strong-hearted child. I love you."

'Family message to DH'.
Photo by Samsung Welfare Foundation

An expert lecture was also held the day before at the auditorium of the Samsung Children’s Education and Culture Center. In the lecture, Professor Eunseon Park from Myongji University’s Department of Art Psychotherapy spoke on "Art Therapy and Neuroscience," and Director Jungwoo Son of the Developmental Disability Behavioral Development Promotion Center at Chungbuk National University Hospital gave a lecture titled "Beautiful Otherness: A Neuroaesthetic Understanding of the Artistic Nature of Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder." About 200 people, including art therapists, related academic researchers, and hospital therapists, attended the lecture.

Nam Min, director of the Children’s Hospital, said, "It is important for children who find verbal communication difficult to express their thoughts and feelings and connect through art. I hope that not only children and families but also many people, including visitors to the Leeum Museum of Art, will draw a future landscape of love and hope together."

Meanwhile, the Samsung Welfare Foundation has been producing calendars featuring works from the Children’s Hospital Art Therapy Room’s "Sangsang Apple Art Studio" since 2020. This year, they plan to produce 24,000 stand-type calendars containing 12 works by children and families exhibited in the "Picture Conversations Sharing Hearts with Children" exhibition and distribute them free of charge to social welfare centers, children’s hospitals, and childcare-related institutions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.