The works of contemporary artist Kim Sang-Yeoul come into bloom as serenely as the order of nature permeates.
The main ingredients of my work are acrylic paints and canvas, which are western materials. But I have a different understanding of western materials and techniques. This starts with the difference between our sentiments and the sentiments of the west.
Please tell us a little about yourself. What brought you to the world of art and how did you start?
The beginning of my journey in art had been that I loved painting since childhood. Whenever I found a piece of paper, I always remember drawing anything, like graffiti. And I was always able to be with nature. It was fortunate that the mountains and rivers were always close together and that’s how one can feel nature throughout the body. Nature was my friend and teacher. Having liked painting and nature since childhood, I naturally connected my childhood, adolescence and college courses with art. For me, art came to be a normal routine, and now it has become a special thing that takes up much of my life. It was my great luck that I was able to interact and grow through nature, especially during childhood and adolescence.
What is the primary role of an artist? How do you describe yourself in the context of challenging people’s perspectives via your work and art?
The main framework of my work has always been nature. I want nature in my work to be not just a subject for reproduction, but a space of reasons for the nature of art. Like the nature of eastern philosophy. I hope that the image will be naturally displayed, and that it will bloom naturally. The bright sky and the twinkling sun falling on the leaves, dancing branches and leaves, the leaves of autumn, moonlight, the withering branches of winter, the sound of the wind, white snowfields and early morning mist, the endless movement of the sky, and water reflected in the pond… is what drives me.
Nature’s subtle and mysterious way may be the biggest reason why I have worked on this subject for a long time.
Secret garden. 227 x 182 cm. Acrylic on canvas. 2018.
How do you deal with the conceptual difficulty and uncertainty of creating work?
I attach more meaning to the process than the concept or the outcome or even the completion of the work. It is also my attitude to work. Since art is always a continuation of life and enlightenment, it is different from yesterday and tomorrow.
Is there any topic lately that you would like to be mentored on?
Via my work I want to have an artistic exchange about nature with people of different cultures in different regions. I want to know how to look at and understand nature and learn and share if necessary.
What would you describe your style?
I am a modern visual artist with an oriental aesthetic.
Secret garden. 193.9 x 193.9 cm. Acrylic on canvas. 2018.
Let’s talk about the evolution of your practice over the years. Tell us about your commitment to your current medium.
The main ingredients of my work are acrylic paints and canvas, which are western materials. But I have a different understanding of western materials and techniques. This starts with the difference between our sentiments and the sentiments of the west. I have spent more than a decade understanding western materials and studying the effects of paper and oriental ink, which are the ingredients of oriental painting.
Let’s talk about your career, or if you prefer artistic journey.
While my work was getting more complete, I remember first receiving an email from the gallery’s chief curator handling modern art in Montreal, Canada, in 2012. It read: “A year later, I’m going to move to France to run a gallery, and I want to invite you and introduce the work at the Canadian gallery where I belong”. I was able to sign a contract with the Canadian gallery and send my work as a writer. Now, the curator runs a gallery in the city of Cannes, France, which focusses on photography and three-dimensional work, and has become a friend.
Secret garden. Acrylic on canvas. 162 x 162 cm. 2018.
How does your audience interact and react to your work? What are you looking for when you look at other artists’ work?
The general reaction goes thus: “Is your work oriental? Is it a picture?” I think it is one of the features of my work that is based on western painting as far as my materials are concerned and that I am borrowing from the photographic field of oriental painting or looking for the possibility of working at the boundary.
It is important that an artist should maintain a creative attitude and have his or her own artistic philosophy. Therefore, he also tries to understand his artistic attitude and depth when looking at other artists’ work. This soon works out as a positive thing in my work. I like the enormous amount of work and enthusiasm that Picasso showed.
Secret garden. Dream. Acrylic on canvas. 227 x 182 cm. 2016.
What was your first sale? Do you handle the commercials yourself or is it outsourced to a gallery or an agent?
The first sale was from my first individual exhibition in 2000. Recently, I received an offer from an overseas art consulting company to work together, and if I have a chance, I would like to continue my activities not only in Korea but also abroad.
Think of the biggest professional risk you’ve taken. What helped you take that risk?
During several overseas exhibitions, except for the cost of production of the work, I have experienced that the artist often has to bear a heavy cost and a loss. There are economic risks.
What is the best piece of advice you have received? Was it helpful?
It is wonderful when an exhibition meets expectations and generates interest. I have had that response from many people.
Installation view.
Tell us about your studio, what kind of place is it? Could you describe your usual work day in the studio?
My studio is closed now, but it was in an elementary school. It was surrounded by a large playground and tall trees. I spend a lot of time working there, from morning to late evening. I spend most of my time there, except perhaps my sleeping hours at home. My studio is always close to nature, making it an inspiring place.
How do you reconcile the conflict between the commercial and the creative? How does your interaction with a curator, gallery or a client evolve?
I think it is a concern for many artists. I make some income from teaching students at a university as a lecturer and the rest from exhibitions. This income plays an important role in living and working in a studio.
My work is linked to several galleries and I am supposed to share the profits when the work is sold. The commission with the gallery varies depending on the progress.
Secret garden. Acrylic on canvas. 227 x 182cm. 2013.
Let’s talk about your frameworks, references and process. What inspires you?
My work is about creating an image of nature on canvas, creating a situation for the viewers as if they were dreaming. A common way of expression is to paint the canvas with a brush and create a shape, and my work is completed by painting the background colour and removing the outline except the shape. Eventually, the colour of the background becomes a shape and an image of nature. My work is made up of western materials, but it is different from other artists’ work as I have an oriental aesthetic.
What are you working on now? What’s coming next season?
I will have a solo exhibition at a gallery in Seoul till early March 2020. Also, a solo exhibition is scheduled at a gallery in Tokyo, Japan, from mid-May till the end of the month.
Before you go – you might like to browse our Artist Interviews. Interviews of artists and outliers on how to be an artist. Contemporary artists on the source of their creative inspiration.