Artisan behind Korea's legendary baduk boards

Shin Wan-sik, the artisan behind Korea’s baduk boards, has spent 60 years making boards in Namyangju and now leads a company that controls 70 percent of the domestic market. His work has appeared in major moments from Lee Se-dol’s AlphaGo match to a board gifted by President Lee Jae Myung to President Xi Jinping at the 2025 APEC summit in Gyeongju. He says master-grade boards depend on rare, old bija wood and careful craftsmanship. His sons are now helping expand exports as demand shifts online.

Shin Wan-sik is 75 and has spent 60 years in the craft, with his right index finger misshapen from years of using hand planes.

His company, Six Brothers Baduk, was founded in 1989 in Namyangju with his five brothers and their wives.

Six Brothers Baduk sells everything from $3 folding boards to museum-quality boards priced at more than $75,000.

A custom board made by Shin was presented by President Lee Jae Myung to President Xi Jinping during the 2025 APEC summit in Gyeongju.

A master-grade board requires bija wood from a tree at least five centuries old, and Shin said only a small fraction of the wood from such trees meets the standard.

Published Sep 15, 2026 7:00 am KST

Six Brothers Baduk President Shin Wan-sik recounts 60 years of craftsmanship

Shin Wan-sik, president of Six Brothers Baduk, which is Korea's largest baduk board manufacturer, holds a hand plane at his company's headquarters in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk

His right index finger tells the entire story before he utters a single word. Unable to straighten naturally and stuck resting lifted upward, misshapen from more than six decades of pressing down on hand planes, it is the quiet, undeniable badge of a craftsman who has spent a lifetime shaping raw timber into pieces of living history.

At 75, Shin Wan-sik bears the physical toll of 60 years dedicated to an ancient craft. He commands 70 percent of Korea's domestic baduk board market through his company, Six Brothers Baduk. Baduk is more commonly known internationally as "go."

Virtually every landmark event in modern Korean baduk has unfolded over his creations. Recently a custom board made by Shin was presented by Korean President Lee Jae Myung to Chinese President Xi Jinping during an APEC summit in Gyeongju in 2025.

His influence reaches far beyond diplomatic gifts: One of his boards was used in the historic match between Lee Se-dol and AlphaGo, as well as the personal boards favored by legendary masters Cho Hun-hyun and Lee Chang-ho — the real-life inspirations behind the film "The Match" (2025).

Lee Se-dol in a baduk match with AlphaGO in 2016. Six Brothers Baduk was commissioned to make the board for the match. Courtesy of Google Korea

Escaping poverty with wood plane

Shin’s journey began in the 1960s in rural Gokseong, South Jeolla Province. Driven to Seoul as a young boy to escape grinding poverty and avoid a life of grueling farm labor, he took his first step into the baduk world at age 14.

Through the legendary late baduk master Cho Nam-chul, a relative of Shin's, he found work as an errand boy at the Songwon Baduk Club in Myeong-dong. The following year, he joined a relative’s woodworking factory, taking up the plane for the first time.

The Vietnam War brought a breakthrough for the factory where Shin worked, driven by the Korean government's push to promote baduk among troops.

"Vietnam was the Korean baduk industry's first export destination," Shin recalled during an interview with The Korea Times at the company's offices in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, Sept. 8.

Shin Wan-sik, president of Six Brothers Baduk, touches a 100-million-won ($75,000) baduk board crafted by his company during an interview with The Korea Times, Sept. 8. A similar board was presented by President Lee Jae Myung to Chinese President Xi Jinping during the APEC summit in Gyeongju in 2025. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk

"There were only four of us — my master, myself and two others — working until 3 a.m. every night. We barely had time to go to the bathroom. We worked nonstop, with no special allowances made just because I was young."

In 1989, Shin united with his five brothers and their wives to establish Six Brothers Baduk in Namyangju. Together, they built an empire that offered everything from cheap folding boards that cost only $3 to museum-quality masterpieces priced at more than $75,000.

Lifelong pursuit of perfect timber

For Shin, true craftsmanship begins with respecting nature.

"A master-grade board is impossible to craft without pure artisan spirit," Shin asserted. The physical creation spans a demanding sequence — curing the raw timber, precise cutting and planing, carving the acoustic resonance cavity on the underside, ruling the grid lines in traditional lacquer, and fitting the hand-carved wooden legs. While every phase demands precision, Shin emphasized that seasoning the timber remains the ultimate foundation.

A turtle-shaped baduk board is seen at the show room of Six Brothers Baduk's headquarters in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, Sept. 8. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk

A master-grade board requires timber from a bija (Torreya nucifera) tree at least five centuries old — a wood prized for its pale golden hue and the clear resonance it produces when a stone strikes its surface.

"Only a tree that lives out its natural life and dies on its own terms yields the finest bija wood, its grain maturing into a flawless, unified tone," Shin explained. "That is something granted by the heavens. Human hands alone cannot make a master board; nature must provide it."

Even from a magnificent tree, perfect wood is sparse. Only a fraction of the wood — the straight, finely grained wood cut clear of the core — meets the standard. Sourcing it has become an obsession. Because Korea’s ancient trees are legally protected, craftspeople like Shin rely heavily on imported logs, but international supplies have dwindled in recent years.

Using a specialized ruler, Shin Wan-sik, president of Six Brothers Baduk, draws grid lines on a baduk board at his company's headquarters in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, Sept. 8. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk

The board gifted to President Xi also used wood procured from abroad. It was carved from a tree estimated to be 700 to 800 years old, naturally dried for two decades and recut three times over the course of a month to achieve absolute perfection.

For Shin, true fulfillment has never been about gaining wealth, but about the raw potential resting inside his workshop.

"The moment I feel most proud is like a farmer gazing at a granary brimming with grain — it’s seeing those logs stacked high," he says. "People called me crazy for buying only timber. My eldest child asked why I didn't invest in real estate instead. But I didn't need land; the wood was what mattered. Looking at the timber I've gathered over a lifetime — that is what makes me happy."

Guarding legacy in digital era

Originating in China, the ancient board game is now played around the world, but Japan helped popularize the game worldwide in the 20th century. The name “go” is Japanese, and is commonly used as a result of their influence on its contemporary development.

In recent years, Korea has gained influence in the baduk world beyond Asia, as more people visit the country to learn and play the game.

Lee Se-dol’s famous match against AlphaGo, the artificial intelligence developed by Google's DeepMind, coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic, prompted many players to move to online platforms, slowing demand for physical boards. As a result, Six Brothers Baduk has kept its business going by turning its attention overseas.

Following the passing of two brothers, Shin’s three sons joined the enterprise, using their fluency in English, Chinese and Japanese to expand exports across Taiwan, the Philippines, Germany and the United States.

Looking out over his workshop, Shin remained hopeful that the tangible warmth of the game will never fully fade. "We may never return to the days when grandfathers sat down with their grandsons to teach them the game," Shin reflected, his bent finger resting against a slab of aged wood. "But online screens can't replace everything. Someday, people will miss the human connection and that clear, beautiful sound of a stone meeting real wood."

韩国围棋大师申完植（Shin Wan-sik）在南杨州从事围棋制作已有60年，如今他领导的公司占据了韩国国内市场70%的份额。他的作品曾出现在许多重要场合，例如李世乭的AlphaGo比赛，以及李在明总统在2025年庆州APEC峰会上赠送给习近平主席的围棋。他表示，顶级围棋的制作依赖于稀有的老木和精湛的工艺。随着需求转向线上，他的儿子们正在帮助公司拓展出口业务。

申万植今年 75 岁，从事木工行业 60 年，由于多年使用手刨，他的右手食指已经变形。

他的公司“六兄弟围棋”于 1989 年在南杨州由他和他的五个兄弟及他们的妻子共同创立。

Six Brothers Baduk 出售的棋盘种类繁多，从 3 美元的折叠棋盘到售价超过 75,000 美元的博物馆级棋盘，应有尽有。

在庆州举行的 2025 年亚太经合组织峰会上，李在明总统向习近平主席赠送了一块由申建华定制的电路板。

大师级的木板需要来自至少有五百年树龄的比加木，而申表示，只有一小部分来自这类树木的木材符合标准。

发布于2026年9月15日 上午7:00（韩国标准时间）

六兄弟围棋社长申完植回顾六十年的精湛技艺

周二，韩国最大的围棋棋盘制造商“六兄弟围棋”社长申完植在其位于京畿道南杨州市的公司总部手持一把手刨。韩国时报崔元硕摄

他的右手食指在他开口之前，就已经诉说了一切。由于六十多年来不断用手刨刨削，手指无法自然伸直，只能向上翘起，形状扭曲变形。这根手指是无声却无可辩驳的印记，象征着一位工匠毕生致力于将原木雕琢成一件件鲜活的历史艺术品。

现年75岁的申完植，身体承受着60年来潜心钻研这门古老技艺的重负。他通过其公司“六兄弟围棋”占据了韩国国内围棋市场70%的份额。围棋在国际上更为人熟知的名称是“go”。

现代韩国围棋界的几乎所有里程碑事件都与申东赫的作品息息相关。最近，韩国总统李在明在2025年庆州举行的亚太经合组织峰会上，将申东赫定制的棋盘赠送给了中国国家主席习近平。

他的影响力远远超出了外交礼物：他设计的棋盘曾被用于李世石与AlphaGo的历史性对决，以及传奇大师赵勋铉和李昌浩的个人棋盘——他们正是电影《比赛》（2025）的现实原型。

2016年，李世石与AlphaGO进行了一场围棋比赛。比赛用棋盘由Six Brothers Baduk专门制作。图片由谷歌韩国提供。

用木刨摆脱贫困

申的围棋之旅始于上世纪60年代，他来自全罗南道谷城县的农村。为了摆脱极度贫困和艰苦的农活，年幼的他被迫前往首尔，并在14岁时迈出了接触围棋的第一步。

通过已故的传奇围棋大师赵南哲（申的亲戚）的介绍，他得以在明洞松原围棋俱乐部做跑腿。第二年，他进入亲戚的木工厂工作，第一次接触了飞机。

越南战争给申工作的工厂带来了突破，这得益于韩国政府大力在军队中推广围棋。

“越南是韩国围棋产业的第一个出口目的地，”申先生在9月8日于京畿道南杨州市的公司办公室接受《韩国时报》采访时回忆道。

9月8日，韩国《韩国时报》采访六兄弟围棋社社长申完植时，触摸了一块价值1亿韩元（约合7.5万美元）的、由该公司制作的围棋棋盘。韩国总统李在明曾在2025年庆州亚太经合组织峰会期间向中国国家主席习近平赠送过类似的棋盘。（韩国时报 崔元硕 摄）

“当时只有我们四个人——我的师傅、我和另外两个人——每天晚上工作到凌晨三点。我们几乎没有时间上厕所。我们不停地工作，即使我年轻，也没有得到任何特殊照顾。”

1989年，申东赫与他的五个兄弟及其妻子在南杨州共同创立了“六兄弟围棋”。他们共同打造了一个庞大的围棋帝国，产品涵盖从售价仅3美元的廉价折叠棋盘到售价超过7.5万美元的博物馆级精品。

毕生追求完美木材

在申看来，真正的匠心始于尊重自然。

“没有纯粹的匠人精神，就不可能打造出大师级的音色，”申先生断言。音色的制作过程十分繁复——从原木的干燥处理、精准的切割和刨削，到在底部雕刻出共鸣腔，再到用传统漆料勾勒出网格线，最后安装手工雕刻的木腿。虽然每个环节都要求极高，但申先生强调，木材的干燥处理才是最终的基础。

9月8日，在京畿道南杨州市六兄弟围棋总部展厅内，可以看到一副乌龟形状的围棋棋盘。（韩国时报 崔元硕 摄）

一块大师级的木板需要用至少有五百年树龄的榧树（Torreya nucifera）的木材制成——这种木材因其淡金色的色调以及石头敲击其表面时产生的清脆共鸣而备受推崇。

“只有自然生长、按其自身意愿死去的树木才能产出最优质的楝木，其纹理成熟后会呈现出完美无瑕、浑然一体的色调，”申先生解释道。“这是上天的恩赐。单凭人手无法打造出顶级的木板；大自然必须赋予它这种天赋。”

即使是出自名树，完美的木材也十分稀少。只有极少一部分木材——笔直、纹理细腻、剔除树芯的木材——才符合标准。寻找这种木材已成为一种执念。由于韩国的古树受到法律保护，像申先生这样的工匠严重依赖进口原木，但近年来国际供应量却日益减少。

9月8日，在京畿道南杨州市的六兄弟围棋公司总部，社长申完植（音译）正用特制尺子在围棋盘上画线。（韩国时报 崔元硕 摄）

赠送给习近平主席的这块木板也采用了从国外进口的木材。它取材于一棵树龄估计在700至800年之间的古树，经过二十年的自然风干，并在一个月内反复切割三次，力求达到完美无瑕。

对申而言，真正的满足感从来都不是获得财富，而是他工作室里蕴藏的原始潜力。

“我最引以为豪的时刻，就像一个农民凝视着满载粮食的粮仓——就是看到那些高高堆放的木材，”他说。“人们说我只买木材是疯了。我的大儿子问我为什么不投资房地产。但我不需要土地；木材才是最重要的。看着我一生收集的木材——这才是让我感到快乐的事情。”

在数字时代守护遗产

围棋起源于中国，如今已风靡全球，但日本在20世纪极大地推动了围棋在全球的普及。“围棋”这个名称源于日语，并因其对围棋现代发展的影响而被广泛使用。

近年来，随着越来越多的人前往韩国学习和玩围棋，韩国在亚洲以外的围棋界的影响力日益增强。

李世乭与谷歌旗下DeepMind公司开发的人工智能AlphaGo的著名对弈，加上新冠疫情的影响，促使许多棋手转向线上平台，导致实体棋盘的需求下降。因此，六兄弟围棋俱乐部将目光投向海外市场，得以维持运营。

在两位兄弟去世后，申的三个儿子加入了公司，利用他们精通的英语、中文和日语，将出口业务扩展到台湾、菲律宾、德国和美国。

望着自己的工作室，申依然满怀希望，相信这项运动带来的那种触手可及的温暖永远不会完全消逝。“我们或许再也回不到爷爷和孙子坐在一起教他们下棋的时代了，”申沉思着，弯曲的手指轻轻触碰着一块老旧的木板。“但网络屏幕无法取代一切。总有一天，人们会怀念人与人之间的交流，怀念石头敲击实木时那清脆悦耳的声音。”