About
K-Lutherie is a register of makers of stringed instruments and bows who are Korean by birth or descent, wherever in the world they work.
The name borrows from K-pop and K-food. Lutherie is the craft of making and restoring stringed instruments, and here it covers luthiers and archetiers alike. Korean makers trained in Cremona, Mittenwald, Chicago, Salt Lake City and Seoul now work across Europe, Asia and North America. Their instruments win medals at the Cremona Triennale, the VSA and Mittenwald, and in 2025 a Korean maker sat on the jury of the Wieniawski competition for the first time. Until now there has been no one place to see this work together.
Each maker has a page with a photograph, a short biography, the city they work in, the kind of work they do, and the dealers who carry their instruments. Dealer listings are standing relationships rather than current stock. Biographies are written in one voice from material the makers supply, and are kept to the facts: training, workshop, recognition.
Makers of Korean origin who make or restore stringed instruments or bows are welcome to be listed, at no cost. Use the application form with a photograph of yourself at work, a short biography, your city, what you make, and the dealers who carry your work.
Dealers who carry a listed maker, or a maker not yet listed, are welcome to be listed too. Use the application form, with the shop name and the makers carried in the notes.
K-Lutherie was started in 2026 by Owen Hojoon Lee, who has worked in the violin trade in Los Angeles since 2002 and is the founder of LA Violin Shop. It is an independent project with no commercial purpose. Its aim is a network in which Korean makers know one another, grow together, and share the knowledge and experience that make for better instruments and better sound. Dealers are listed on the same terms whoever they are.