2026 Pohang Steel Art Festival (2026PSAF)

About the festival

Takma (琢磨) – Iron removes rust with iron, and potatoes peel each other by rubbing together. Iron sharpens iron, Potatoes sharpen potatoes 'Iron shines with iron.' This proverb paradoxically uses the rubbing of iron to say that people escape old habits only by rubbing against other people. In Buddhist temples this is called 'takma dobban,' fellow practitioners who polish one another. Just as potatoes are put in a large basin with water and rubbed against each other to peel off their skins, Buddhism practices takma through fellow practitioners. Pohang's sea reaches deep into the land and creates a scenery quite different from other places. The rubbing together of Pohang's people likewise conveys a rich warmth unlike other places. "What attracts people most is other people." (William H. Whyte) Capturing the identity of Pohang, a city that lives with iron, and dreaming of the renewal of iron and the completion of ironware, the theme of the 2026 Pohang Steel Art Festival is set as "Takma": "Iron removes rust with iron, and potatoes peel each other by rubbing together (Iron sharpens iron, Potatoes sharpen potatoes)." By rubbing together the 'P' and 'H' of Pohang instead of jade and stone, it seeks to reveal to the world the dazzling inner life of Pohang.