Humans of Jeju

She was a bold young girl who, right after graduating high school, took a guitar and moved to Seoul. After becoming the vocalist of the band Sinchon Blues, which represents Korean blues, she released the EP in 2005. Later, she established the indie label Run Music and released her first album . She received praise as a "singer-songwriter who possesses the strength to never fall into despair, even while singing of sorrow." After 3 years and 8 months, she released her second album , gradually finding the musical color she sought. After moving to Jeju and starting a new life with her family, she realized that love is at the beginning and end of everything, and created the song , which helped her be reborn. After about 11 years since her second album, she released her third album .

Oh Hyang-jong majored in pottery. Although he initially planned to study ‘Onggi (traditional Korean pottery)’ for just a year, he’s continued honing his craft for 40 years, captivated by its charm. He learned Onggi under the guidance of five masters, but finds that the more he works with it, the more challenging it becomes. He has traveled the world promoting Korean Onggi, participating in conferences, exhibitions, and various other activities. Currently, he teaches Onggi making at his workshop in a small rural village in Jeju, while also pursuing his own creative projects.

Born and raised in Jeju, he runs Lamp Studio in the western village of Gosan-ri, Jeju. He handles sound across various fields, including album production, documentaries, films, commercials, and live performances. Like a daily exercise, he collects sounds from Jeju, later using his accumulated sound data in his projects. He also engages in meaningful work with sound, such as layering Jeju's natural sounds over poetry readings by the owners of the local bookstore 'Sorisomun', his neighbors, and providing sound for monthly indie band performances.

Byeolatgan Farmers is a community of eco-friendly farmers who explore “What does a sustainable way of life look like?” by planting countless questions like stars and seeking their own answers. Ten farmers are working together to cultivate a 1,000-pyeong (about 3,300 square meters) ecological garden in Daheul-ri Village, conducting “harmless farming experiments” for the benefit of all living beings. The group includes Ko Juhi, Lee Inhee, Lee Chanhee, along with seven other members.

In 2001, Kim Poomchang moved to Jeju Island with his family and settled in Seogwipo City. He has won awards at prestigious art exhibitions such as the Korea Art Exhibition and the National Art Exhibition of Korea. He has consistently created works centered on Jeju Island and has held over 20 solo exhibitions. He has also participated in numerous group and invitational exhibitions both domestically and internationally. In 2025, one of his works, featuring a "fantasy where humans, whales, octopuses, and birds coexist," will be included in an elementary school art textbook. Inspired by Jeju's natural beauty, his art depicts a fantastical world where not only humans but all living creatures coexist. His published works include and , and he has illustrated numerous children's books.

Since childhood, he has loved making videos. Since 2014, he has been consistently creating video content related to Jeju and has been active as a video creator. He now also serves as an ambassador promoting Jeju and is expanding his activities by taking on the new genre of stand-up comedy.

Kyung-hwa and Yun-ho operate a small space called "Paper Room," where they run a risograph printing studio and showcase a variety of works for sale. As designers, they leverage their expertise to create diverse art books and regularly participate in book fairs. Risograph is an eco-friendly printing method that uses soybean oil and rice bran oil, allowing for vibrant colors and high saturation, as it prints one ink color at a time. This makes it particularly suitable for artists and graphic designers to produce their works. Recently, it has also become popular among independent publishers and individuals looking to create unique pieces. Their dream is to continue operating the printing studio even as they grow old in a rural village.

Born in 1953 in Songdang-ri Village of Gujwa-eup Area, Huh Gye-saeng faced a difficult life from a young age due to her family's poor circumstances. She did work typically reserved for men. At the age of 20, she married and moved to Seonheul-ri Village in Jocheon-eup Area, where she raised four daughters and one son while farming tangerines. After suffering from an unexplained illness, she began learning Jeju folk songs and work songs from a master singer, and in 2010, she won the grand prize at the National Folk Song Contest. After learning to sing, her illness completely disappeared. It was only much later that she realized it had been an illness of the heart. She has since passed on her farming responsibilities to her children and now enjoys a peaceful and happy life singing and painting. Her life story is documented in the book .

In 2016, after hearing about teenagers who were forced to use insoles as sanitary pads due to financial difficulties, she founded a cooperative to promote the use of cloth sanitary pads. The cooperative, Hamanghaneun Geunal (The Day in Jeju), consists of 10 members and operates as a social enterprise with a zero-waste focus. They produce various products using organic cotton, which are introduced and sold at their offline platform, Jigubyul Store. The product name, Sorak, was inspired by the Jeju dialect word “sorak,” meaning “soft and dry.” For the past eight years, she has been donating 100 cloth sanitary pads each month to those in need. This year, she is focusing on developing upcycled products made from marine waste, such as buoys, and is actively engaging in environmental activities like giving lectures to spread the message of a zero-waste lifestyle to more people.

Earth-saving farmers running an eco-friendly, year-round healing experience farm called Garden of Tangerines Baryeong. The term "Baryeong" is a Jeju language word that means the origin of organic farming, and they put the philosophy into practice. They offer various experiential programs throughout the seasons: tangerine blossoms in spring, green tangerines in summer, and picking ripe orange tangerines in autumn. Committed to an eco-friendly lifestyle, they implement ecological cycle farming methods, such as seawater farming and cover cropping, to promote a healthy planet and safe food.