Artwork Concept
Artist Statement
For many years, I have centered my practice on the figure of the contemplative human being, working across painting and installation.
The human figures in my work are reduced to only a head and torso, with the arms and legs omitted. The head represents the realm of thought, reflection, and questioning, while the torso signifies the center of existence that bears the weight of life. I am less interested in the human as an acting being than in the human as a thinking being. Throughout life, people are continuously shaped by their relationships, environments, and experiences. My work begins with questions about this condition of human existence.
The lines drawn on hanji (Korean paper) represent the body, while the traces of permeating and spreading color symbolize the traces of the mind. Pigment seeps into the paper, creating unpredictable marks and stains. I regard these traces as records of the memories, emotions, and relationships that accumulate throughout a person's life. Human beings exist within networks of others, society, and the environment, constantly changing through these interactions. Over time, these experiences become inseparable from both body and mind.
The heads of the figures in my work are often tilted to one side. I think of this as an “angle of contemplation.” Just as the Earth’s 23.5-degree tilt makes seasons and life possible, each person forms their own angle of thought through experience and reflection. As the weight of life deepens, so too does contemplation, while relationships and environments continually alter the direction of one's existence.
In recent years, my interest in human existence has expanded toward more fundamental questions. Where do we come from? What are we made of? My inquiry into the human condition has led me to questions concerning the origins of life, the cycles of nature, and humanity’s place within the cosmos. We are beings composed of matter forged in ancient stars, temporarily taking the form of human life. Yet my work continues to begin with the human. Through humanity, I seek to understand the world, and through human contemplation, I seek to question the meaning of existence.
To permeate is birth. To spread is life. To evaporate is death. Human beings permeate one another, influencing and transforming each other through their encounters. Even after disappearance, traces remain. Through lines and color, permeation and diffusion, I attempt to depict human beings who endure the weight of life while questioning the meaning of their existence.
Ultimately, my work returns to a single set of questions:
Who am I?
What sustains human life?
And why do we exist?
작가노트
나는 오랫동안 ‘사유하는 인간’을 작업의 중심에 두고 회화와 설치 작업을 이어오고 있다.
작품 속 인간은 팔과 다리가 생략된 채 머리와 몸통만 남아 있다. 머리는 생각하고 질문하는 정신의 영역이며, 몸통은 삶의 무게를 견디는 존재의 중심이다. 나는 행동하는 인간보다 사유하는 인간에 관심이 있다. 인간은 살아가는 동안 수많은 관계와 환경 속에서 영향을 주고받으며 끊임없이 변화한다. 나의 작업은 이러한 인간 존재에 대한 질문에서 출발한다.
한지 위에 그어진 선은 신체를 나타내고, 스며들고 번지는 색채의 흔적은 정신의 흔적을 의미한다. 물감은 한지에 스며들고 번지며 예측할 수 없는 흔적을 남긴다. 나는 이 흔적을 인간이 살아가며 형성하는 기억과 감정, 관계의 흔적으로 바라본다. 인간은 타인과 사회, 환경 속에서 살아가며 끊임없이 변화하고, 그 과정은 몸과 정신에 스며들어 존재의 일부가 된다.
작품 속 인간의 머리는 대부분 한쪽으로 기울어져 있다. 나는 이를 ‘사유의 각도’라고 생각한다. 지구가 23.5도의 기울기로 계절과 생명을 품듯 인간 또한 저마다의 사유의 각도를 형성하며 살아간다. 삶의 무게가 깊어질수록 사유는 더욱 깊어지고, 관계와 환경은 인간의 방향을 끊임없이 변화시킨다.
최근에는 인간 존재에 대한 관심이 보다 근원적인 질문으로 확장되고 있다. 인간은 어디에서 왔는가. 우리는 무엇으로 이루어져 있는가. 인간 존재에 대한 탐구는 생명의 기원과 자연의 순환, 그리고 우주 속 인간의 위치에 대한 질문으로 이어진다. 우리는 오래전 별에서 태어난 물질로 이루어진 존재이며, 잠시 인간의 형상을 빌려 살아간다. 그러나 나의 작업은 여전히 인간으로부터 출발한다. 나는 인간을 통해 세계를 이해하고, 인간의 사유를 통해 존재의 의미를 질문하고자 한다.
스미는 것은 탄생이고, 번지는 것은 삶이며, 증발하는 것은 죽음이다. 인간은 서로에게 스며들고 영향을 주며 살아간다. 그리고 사라진 이후에도 흔적으로 남는다. 나는 선과 색, 스밈과 번짐의 과정을 통해 삶의 무게를 견디며 존재의 의미를 질문하는 인간의 모습을 그리고자 한다.
나의 작업은 결국 하나의 질문으로 돌아온다.
나는 누구인가.
인간은 무엇으로 사는가.
그리고 우리는 왜 존재하는가.
Working Process (Sayu Series)
Constructing the Composition
The structure of the composition is established through the placement, tilt, and spacing of the figures. The repeated forms evoke different angles of contemplation, generating relationships, tension, and rhythm within the pictorial space.
Working Process (Sayu Series)
Applying Color
Each figure is assigned a distinct color, reinforcing its individual presence within the composition. The colors allude to differences in emotion and lived experience, creating multiple layers of relationships and interactions across the pictorial space.
Working Process (Sayu Series)
Permeation
As water and pigment permeate the hanji, they leave behind unpredictable traces. The spreading of the medium reveals a painterly passage of time, where intention and chance exist in constant dialogue.
Working Process (Sayu Series)
Constructing the Color Field
Layers of pigment are repeatedly built up, transforming the pictorial surface into a unified field of color. The figures gradually dissolve into the background, blurring the boundaries between space and existence.
Working Process (Sayu Series)
Harmonization
The placement and density of the figures, together with the balance of color, are refined to establish the overall tension of the composition. Each painting conveys a unique emotional resonance and a distinct state of contemplation.
Working Process (Permeate Series)
Creating the Form
Aluminum is cut and shaped into simplified forms that symbolize the human figure. Repeated throughout the work, these forms become the basic units of the Permeate Series, functioning as signs that extend beyond individual identity.
Working Process (Permeate Series)
Constructing the Surface
Gesso is applied to the aluminum forms and left to dry before layers of hanji are carefully attached to the surface. Enveloping the rigid metal structure, the hanji introduces a softer texture and material presence, transforming the forms and giving them a new visual character.
Working Process (Permeate Series)
Permeation of Color
Color is allowed to permeate the hanji-covered human forms, creating traces of existence and relationships. Figures facing upward and downward symbolize different states of being, while each form is continuously influenced and transformed through its encounters with the external world.The repeatedly produced forms are arranged within both pictorial and spatial compositions, establishing relationships with one another. The colors absorbed into each figure remain as traces of time and experience. Through this process, the work reveals human beings as entities that are constantly shaped and transformed through their interactions with the world.
Exhibition Study (2020)
This model was developed to explore exhibition strategies for the Sayu Series. Through the arrangement of repeated figures and their relationship to the viewer, it investigates how the conceptual and visual language of the paintings can extend beyond the two-dimensional surface and unfold within an exhibition space.
Exhibition Study (2020)
This model was developed to explore the relationships created by repeated forms and color within an exhibition environment. As viewers move through the space, the distances, rhythms, and visual connections between the works continuously change. The study investigates how the language of painting can extend beyond the two-dimensional surface and unfold as a spatial experience.
The Weight of Sayu (2024)
This installation consists of red balloons filled with water and suspended from the ceiling, connected to one another by red strings that structure the space. The balloons symbolize both a mass of blood associated with the beginning of life and the primordial source of existence, while the strings evoke the umbilical cord that sustains and supports the weight of life.Over time, the water contained within the balloons gradually evaporates in response to the surrounding environment, causing their volume to diminish. This transformation reveals the finitude and fragility of human existence. Through the physical processes of evaporation and gravity, the work visualizes the weight of life, the passage of time, and the inevitability of disappearance.By tracing these subtle yet continuous changes, the installation explores the meaning of human existence and the transient nature of life.
Sayu Series (2024)
Figures of varying colors are scattered across the surface of the painting. They exist in proximity yet never touch, separated yet connected through invisible relationships. The vacant spaces become fields of silence and contemplation, while each figure inhabits the composition carrying its own memories and passage of time.
Permeate Series (2023)
Using aluminum and hanji, I create simplified forms that symbolize the human figure. Consisting only of a head and torso, with the arms and legs omitted, these forms emphasize states of existence and contemplation rather than action.The figures appear in two orientations. Upward-facing forms symbolize a state of being untouched by the external world, while downward-facing forms represent human beings cast into the realities of life.The colors that permeate the forms are traces of relationships and experiences accumulated through encounters with others. Human beings are continuously shaped and transformed through their interactions with the world. The downward-facing figures reveal the conditions of existence as lived within gravity, time, and environment, while the permeating and spreading colors visualize the process of change that emerges through the meeting of the self and the world.Through these forms and traces, the work reflects upon existence, relationships, and the meanings that human beings construct throughout the course of life.
Sayu Series (2023)
The repeated human figures establish relationships through variations in color and spatial distance. While each figure exists as an individual presence, together they form a collective constellation, generating a shared human landscape within the composition.Layers of lines and color accumulated on the hanji surface reveal traces of memories and experiences shaped over time. Through these layered marks, the work investigates the meanings of human existence and the relationships that connect individuals to one another.
Sayu Series (2022–2023)
The pictorial surface is constructed through the repeated accumulation of red human forms. Layered and intertwined, the figures merge into a collective landscape, while the recurring lines register traces of memories and experiences sedimented over time.Occupying the entire composition, the figures transcend individual identity and evoke the dynamics of relationships and collective existence. Through this process of repetition and accumulation, the work visualizes the traces of human life and explores the meanings embedded within human existence.
Blue Sayu Series (2021)
This series explores traces of human existence and relationships through the movement of color as it permeates and spreads across the surface of hanji. Repeated layers of lines and color hold memories and experiences accumulated through time, while the faintly remaining figures suggest shifting states of human consciousness.The diffusion and permeation of color reveal the weight and lightness of life, as well as the emotional flows that emerge through human relationships. Through these processes, the work visualizes the continual transformation of the self within the passage of time and experience.
Sayu Series (2020)
Human beings living in contemporary society often experience solitude and anxiety within complex networks of relationships and social structures. The simplified figures within the composition reflect this condition of human existence, while the accumulated layers of color register the passage of time through which memories and experiences are formed.The traces left by permeation reveal an inner state suspended between the weight of life and the desire to become lighter. Through these subtle marks and accumulations, the work explores the emotional landscape of human existence and the ways in which individuals navigate the complexities of life.
Sayu Series (2020)
Human beings exist within intricate networks of relationships. The repeated red lines traversing the surface connect and intersect like capillaries flowing through the body, forming traces of human connection. While each figure maintains its individuality, it simultaneously becomes part of a larger collective presence.The accumulated lines suggest the ways in which time, memory, and experience permeate the body and settle within human existence. Through this process of connection and accumulation, the work reflects upon the weight and meaning of being shaped through relationships.
Fragments of Graphite (2021)
The work is constructed through the repetitive act of drawing and smudging graphite lines across the surface. Fragments generated through the friction between graphite and paper accumulate into a hazy atmospheric field, where lingering figures evoke conditions of collectivity and solitude, connection and separation.The repeated accumulation of lines records traces of memories and experiences shaped through human relationships. Through these deposits of graphite and the ambiguity of the pictorial space, the work reflects upon the search for meaning and existence within an uncertain reality.
Sayu Series (2021, Detail)
This enlarged detail focuses on the boundaries and layers of color created through the permeation of pigment into hanji. The red fields of color and traces of diffusion reveal a process where intention and chance exist in constant dialogue. Within this atmospheric surface, the figure remains as a trace of being, carrying the accumulated presence of time and memory.
Sayu Series (2019)
This work explores contemplation and the traces of human relationships through simplified human forms and the repeated layering of lines. The intertwining and intersecting marks evoke the movement of memory and emotion, while the accumulated traces across the surface reveal the trajectories of human existence shaped through encounters and relationships.Through repetition and accumulation, the work reflects upon the ways in which individuals are formed, connected, and transformed within the networks of human experience.
Sayu Series (2019)
The solitary figure remains in silence, yet is connected to innumerable unseen relationships. The lines crossing the surface trace the movement of memories and emotions that have passed through time, while the layered marks become temporal sediments left behind by lived experience.Accumulated on the surface of hanji, these lines reflect the contemplative journey of human existence—an existence continuously shaped and transformed through its encounters with the world.
Sayu Series (2017–2018)
Human beings are in constant exchange with the world around them, continuously shaping and being shaped by their environments and relationships. The figures within the composition symbolize individual existence, while the repeated lines and layered colors register the traces of experiences and external influences that become embedded within the self.As pigment permeates and spreads across the surface of hanji, it evokes the shifting inner states of human beings, resonating like frequencies that meet and interact. The accumulated marks surrounding the figures reveal the passage of time and the ongoing transformation of human existence through its encounters with the external world.
Sayu Series (2017–2018)
The simplified human figure stands alone within an expansive field of emptiness, evoking solitude and contemplation. Layers of ink permeating the surface of hanji and their softened boundaries reflect the gradual accumulation of memory and emotion over time.Through a restrained visual language of minimal form and color, the work reflects upon the weight of existence and poses questions concerning the fundamental nature of human beings.
Sayu Series (2018)
The simplified human figure represents the individual navigating contemporary society. The expansive field of empty space becomes a realm of solitude and silence, while the bowed posture of the figure suggests an act of contemplation directed toward life and existence.Reduced to its most essential form, the figure embodies the anxieties, questions, and persistent search for meaning that accompany the human condition. Through this restrained visual language, the work reflects upon the nature of existence and the experience of being human.
Absorption (2017)
Subtle emotions permeate the self gradually and often unnoticed. The human figure encounters a space saturated with color, absorbing the external world into its being. The absorbed colors become traces of memory and experience, accumulating within the self and slowly transforming it.Through this process of absorption, the work explores how human existence is shaped through encounters, relationships, and continuous engagement with the world.
Permeate Series: Installation Study Drawing (2017)
This conceptual drawing was created to explore the potential spatial extension of the Permeate Series. Repeated human forms are arranged throughout the exhibition space, distributed across walls and architectural structures to examine the relationship between individual presence and collective experience.The drawing investigates how traces of contemplation might expand beyond the surface of painting and unfold within space. As a study, it documents a process of connecting painting and installation, existence and relationships, image and environment.
Permeate Series (2016)
This work reduces the human figure to its most essential form through the permeation of color into hanji. Arranged irregularly across the surface, the figures are accompanied by traces of absorbed color and shadow, suggesting the transformations that emerge through encounters with the external world.As materials permeate a surface and leave lasting traces, human beings are likewise shaped through experiences and relationships. Through this process of absorption and transformation, the work reflects upon the formation of human existence and identity.
Weight of Sayu Series: Installation Study Drawing (2024)
This conceptual drawing was developed to explore the spatial realization of the weight of life and the origins of existence through the use of red balloons and connecting strings. Each suspended balloon symbolizes an individual life and presence, while the repetitive clustered arrangement reflects the relationship between the individual and society.Drawn downward by gravity, the forms suggest the burden and fragility of life. At the same time, the interconnected structure evokes the invisible ties that bind human beings together. As an installation study, the drawing serves as a record of a process that seeks to expand contemplation on existence, time, and mortality into the realm of space.
Unrecognizable Being and Monologue (2005–2006)
The human figure inhabits a space of silence while confronting an unseen presence. The dark forms that cross or penetrate the body symbolize an unrecognizable entity situated between consciousness and the unconscious. Though undefined and elusive, this presence continually exerts its influence, provoking questions of existence and generating an ongoing inner monologue.The reduced figure and expansive emptiness establish a space of solitude and contemplation. The figure attempts to sense and comprehend the invisible presence, yet remains unable to fully grasp it, returning repeatedly to reflection and self-questioning. Situated between presence and absence, recognition and forgetting, the work explores the human desire to affirm and understand its own existence.
Sketches (2005)
These early conceptual sketches explore questions of existence and perception through a range of visual experiments. The human figure is situated within uncertain conditions, confronting invisible forces, relationships, memories, and emotional flows. Points, lines, masses, and traces operate as distinct formal languages, visualizing psychological movements that emerge between consciousness and the unconscious.Dark forms and dispersed marks suggest the presence of something unrecognizable yet influential. The tensions and conflicts that arise around the figures reflect the anxiety, contemplation, and self-questioning generated through the human effort to understand the world and locate oneself within it.As a record of formal experimentation, these sketches mark an early stage in an ongoing investigation into human existence and the dynamics of inner experience.
Permeate Series (2005–2006)
The upward-facing and downward-facing figures represent two conditions of existence. One suggests a state not yet touched by the world, while the other embodies a being cast into the complexities of life.Human beings move through countless relationships, events, and the passage of time. Invisible influences permeate both body and consciousness, leaving traces that shape and transform existence. Suspended in space, the figures evoke a condition of not fully belonging anywhere, while remaining in continuous contact with the world and its forces.Through these forms, the work explores how human beings are affected, transformed, and ultimately formed through their encounters with the world. It reflects upon existence as an ongoing process of becoming rather than a fixed state of being.
Green Story (2002)
This body of work began during a period marked by personal change and experiences of loss. Through painting and installation centered on human figures and green imagery, it visualizes questions concerning existence and life.Green functions as a symbol of life, growth, and recovery, while also serving as a trace of sensations preserved in memory. The figures situated within the pictorial and spatial environments reveal the inner condition of human beings, where solitude and anxiety intersect with hope and loss. They reflect a state of existence that is constantly shifting and evolving. Simplified forms move beyond the representation of specific individuals and instead symbolize the human condition itself.The work originates from questions about how human beings live and what they leave behind. This early inquiry into existence later developed into the Sayu Series and the Permeate Series, becoming the foundation of the artist’s ongoing practice.
Development of the Work
For many years, questions surrounding human existence have been the point of departure for my artistic practice.
In my early works, Green Story and Unrecognizable Being and Monologue, I explored questions of existence and perception, solitude, and the meaning of life. Later, in the Permeate Series, I turned my attention to the ways human beings are transformed through their relationships with the external world. The permeating and diffusing colors function as traces of memory, emotion, and human connection, revealing individuals as beings in a constant state of change.
In the Sayu Series, I visualized traces of contemplation through repeated human forms. The tilted figures symbolize individuals standing before the weight of life and existential questions, while the accumulation of lines and color reveals the passage of time embedded within human existence.
My recent work expands these inquiries into broader dimensions of time and space. In The Weight of Sayu, I explore the weight and finitude of life within a spatial context. In For a Moment, Stardust Becomes Human, I consider human beings as temporary presences within cosmic time.
Ultimately, my work returns to a single set of questions:
What sustains human life?
And why do we exist?