Min Hee-jin (; born 1979) is a South Korean art director and

graphic designer A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography, or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for publishe ...

. She is the current

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especiall ...

of ADOR, a subsidiary of entertainment company

Hybe Corporation Hybe Co., Ltd. (, stylized as HYBE Corporation) is a South Korean multinational entertainment company established in 2005 by Bang Si-hyuk as Big Hit Entertainment Co., Ltd. The company operates as a record label, talent agency, music productio ...

, where she previously served as chief brand officer. She was formerly a creative director at

SM Entertainment SM Entertainment Co., Ltd. () is a South Korean multinational entertainment agency. It is one of South Korea's largest entertainment companies where it was established in 1995 by record executive and record producer Lee Soo-man. The company ha ...

, where she was responsible for the branding of groups such as

Girls' Generation Girls' Generation (), also known as SNSD, is a South Korean girl group formed by SM Entertainment. The group is composed of eight members: Taeyeon, Sunny, Tiffany, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sooyoung, Yoona, and Seohyun. Originally a nine-piece e ...

Shinee Shinee ( ; ko, 샤이니, Syaini; ja, シャイニー, Shainī; stylized as SHINee) is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment in 2008. The group's musical impact in their native country has earned them numerous accolades and the ...

, f(x), Exo and Red Velvet.

Early life

Min was born in 1979. She attended

Seoul Women's University Seoul Women's University (SWU) is a private university in Nowon District, Seoul, South Korea. The university comprises five colleges and is a doctorate degree-granting institution. History The school was founded in December 1960 by the Presby ...

, where she received a degree in visual design.

Career

2002–2018: SM Entertainment

Min joined

in 2002 as a graphic designer. She was later promoted to creative director and led the visual branding of groups such as

, f(x), Exo and Red Velvet. Her role involved overseeing the planning and production of album artwork, costumes and music videos, as well as building the artist's brand identity through non-visual means. For instance, she created an exhibition to commemorate the release of f(x)'s ''

4 Walls ''4 Walls'' is the fourth studio album by South Korea-based girl group f(x), released by SM Entertainment and Genie Music on October 27, 2015. A dominant electropop and synthpop record that incorporates various genres, such as house, EDM and UK ...

'' album (2015), and engaged fans in a deductive game titled "Pathcode" as part of promotions for Exo's 2015 album ''

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Exo ...

''. During her tenure at SM, she received attention for her innovative, experimental approach to art direction, which differed from the formulaic style used by first-generation

K-pop K-pop (), short for Korean popular music, is a form of popular music originating in South Korea as part of South Korean culture. It includes styles and genres from around the world, such as pop, hip hop, R&B, experimental, rock, jazz, g ...

idols. Min is credited with shifting the visual direction of the K-pop industry to become more concept-driven, and is particularly noted for her work on f(x)'s 2013 album ''

Pink Tape ''Pink Tape'' is the second studio album by South Korean girl group f(x). The album was released on July 29, 2013, by S.M. Entertainment. ''Pink Tape'' is the first studio album by f(x) in over two years, the last being the repackage of their fi ...

''. She joined SM's board of directors in 2017, but left the company at the end of 2018 due to burnout.

2019–present: Hybe Corporation

Min joined

in 2019 as chief brand officer and oversaw the company's rebranding. She was appointed CEO of Hybe's new subsidiary ADOR (All Doors One Room) in November 2021. Min shared in a statement, "Our label won’t hesitate to accept new challenges and strive to create artist IP and content containing ADOR's unique philosophy." The label unveiled its first girl group

NewJeans NewJeans () is a South Korean girl group formed by ADOR, a subsidiary of Hybe Corporation. The group is composed of five members: Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin and Hyein. The group pre-released their debut single "Attention" on July 22, 2022, ...

in July 2022, with Min leading their creative direction and development. They released their debut self-titled extended play on August 1.

Controversies

Min has been accused by online users of sharing pedophilic content, such as the poster of the 1974 film '' I'll Take Her Like a Father'', on her social medias and adapting a

Lolita ''Lolita'' is a 1955 novel written by Russian-American novelist Vladimir Nabokov. The novel is notable for its controversial subject: the protagonist and unreliable narrator, a middle-aged literature professor under the pseudonym Humbert Hum ...

-inspired concept in her work with f(x). In response, ADOR announced they have taken legal action.

Awards and nominations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Min, Hee-jin 1979 births Living people Seoul Women's University alumni Creative directors South Korean art directors South Korean graphic designers South Korean chief executives South Korean music industry executives SM Entertainment people Hybe Corporation