kimeunok_portfolio

The Precious Message


Kim Eun Ok

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The artist, Kim Eun-Ok shows the process to find its original-ity on her artwork. Pursuing that, she discovers the motif of a cloth-wrapper which contains her inner world as the symbolic el-ement of the work. She has been consistently worked to reveal the discourse of her artwork regarding the cloth-wrapper as the medi-um of communication.A cloth-wrapper was essentially the practical tool to deliver or keep objects. Sometimes, it uses not only the ceremonial medium for taking manners and rules, but also a conjuring instrument for re-ligious faith and wish, not just a simple tool. With signifying the meaning as conjuring wish praying for blessing and longevity, it was printed the words of Bok or Soo on the cloth, and expressed various colors and patterns as the elements of dignity, ranks, and styles symbolized for ten longevities, a dragon, and a phoenix. Therefore, a cloth-wrapper itself is an artwork and a conjuring instrument consisting of signs, symbols, colors, and decorations. Above all, it evokes the special means to communication with cer-emony. The artist, Kim Eun-Ok tries to talk to the viewers by choosing this medium for delivering her formative language. Even though there are various kinds of cloth-wrapper, it reminds of the symbol of traditional Korean cloth-wrapper printed traditional patterns. On the other hand, it appeals the silent ineffable message by writing or words, as like a plain common cloth-wrapper which mother passes on to her children.In this context, a cloth-wrapper is not an object but the means of communication in different dimension beyond language. Specially, it is the peculiar medium which delivers as Korean as the message beyond words through manners, spirit, and sentiments.

Accordingly, in Kim Eun-oks artwork, even though it hides the things inside the cloth-wrapper by wrapping of the cloth-wrapper in splendid decoration or earnestly made a knot, it suggests The Precious Message as the title of artwork, which is significant to be wrapped the inner message in the artists sincere mind.And the artist draws the eyes on the pattern of the cloth-wrap-per in hyper realistic expression, to emphasize the hidden meaning of her cloth-wrapper. Also she suggests the different viewpoint looking at a traditional object with the distance for observation. It is the artists own viewpoint by controlling the composition with other ornaments, and trying to distribute the viewpoints of objects in her artwork.It tries to focus on the cloth-wrapper by arranging the background whether it is splendid or dark on the space, similar to the way mak-ing the visual installment to meet with not only its narrative but also the hidden message by shifting the contextual reading.In this visual installment, the artist would expand the sight staring at the surface of the cloth-wrapper in hyper realistic way, to put the hidden meaning on the other side of the cloth-wrapper, and to contain the contemplation beyond the images.Starting from the sensitive part for representing objects, it captures the viewers eyes on the space of contemplation as the formative strategy of her artwork. At the point of that, she would create the image of cloth-wrapper as the signal structure, through not words but the channel in different dimension. The artist, Kim Eun-Ok would deliver the precious message reflecting her inner sight on the artwork.

Lee, Seunghoon (Cyart Research Institute)


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On the Formative Structure Hidden under the Skin of the Bojagi In Kim Eun-oks works we can discover the image of bojagi (Korean wrapping cloth), characterized by its fancy colors and decorative designs, and the form of a bottari (bundle) revealing a certain sense of volume inside the bojagi. The image and designs of the bojagi continuously generate certain visual signals that reveal a sentiment unique to Korea, and the simple shape of the bottari acts as a visual structure that strongly implies the indirect but strong emotional attitudes of Koreans, in that it reveals the shape of its contents to a certain extent, unlike containers such as bags or boxes. As suggested by the title Precious Message, this seems to be an effective method for the artist to reveal the situation where the contents cannot be seen directly, but it is implied that something precious is inside. But if we take a closer look at the visual situation painted by the artist, we can discover that she is making several peculiar formative attempts in her work process. This has to do with the formative relations of tension and balance between the illusional representation of space that indicates the three-dimensional space of reality and the flat supporting spaceActually in the history of painting the issues of realistic represen-tation and the structure of the support have long been important topics of discussion, but the method of representation chosen by artist Kim Eun-ok is evidently positioned somewhere between hy-per-realistic expression, without a single brush stroke visible, and expressive representation, where the touches remain alive. While the former tells us about the position of the artwork in the sense that it is a representational object of expression dependant on the original reality, indicated by illusion, the latter enables us to confirm the position of the artwork as a creation of the artist, who relates to the original reality, but also assumes a new position of originality as a creative entity. Thus, the artist is attempting painterly representation to indicate the actual situation of the precious message being wrapped in the bottari, but at the same time, wanting the painterly expression it-self to serve as a precious message. So Kims work at first seems to take the form of hyper-realism or photo-realism, in that it maximizes objects through detailed de-piction, but if we look closer, we can discover that the artist has left traces of brush strokes and drawing-like lines to a certain level. This means she is concerned about the appropriate meth-od to express the images with regard to intertextual correspon-dence, such as the relations between the objects in the works and the background spaces, or between the picture plane of the work and the space it is to be installed. She is trying to find a point of compromise, which can maintain a certain balance between the three-dimensional space of illusion created by hyper-realistic il-lusion, and the limitation of painting, which can only exist as a two-dimensional surface.

The peculiar tendencies of the artist, who searches for such ten-sion and balance, are also revealed in the relationship between the two-dimensional bojagi and the three-dimensional bottari, and it is necessary to note that such dynamics occur between the objects in the canvas and the background spaces, and even between the canvas itself and the exhibition space. Sometimes the artist eliminates the hard-edged corners of the can-vas and cuts out the silhouette of the bottari into a unique-shaped canvas, or when working with a conventional canvas, declines to paint the perspectives of the background, where the bottari would be placed, but creates flat or decorative spaces as psychological metaphors. In this case the artist is not seeing the support of the painting as a window-structure of vision, but as another axis of a structure corresponding to her formative language. Even though the bottari is a bojagi on the surface, the reason it is specially called bottari is because of the dependence of the shape, which is dominated by the shape of the object wrapped in-side. This means it is difficult to specify an independent form for the bottari itself. Nevertheless, being able to think of a universal form of bottari indicates that there is a habitual memory recalling method in picturing the typical form of the object called bottari, based on the tension between the bojagi and contents wrapped inside the bojagi. Ultimately, concerning the issue of painterly representation, through the attempt to connect the actual situation of the original as the object of representation, and the actual situation of the original as a creation by the artist, under a relationship of tension and bal-ance, Kim Eun-ok presents a unique way of seeing with regard to the meaning of originality and painterly representation. Moreover, she has experimented on the possibility of formatively expressing the world of sentiment and image, which belong to the non-lin-guistic realm, based on her interest in the system of significance, which emerges as an entity of aura on the other side of space that is an illusion shown superficially in painterly expression, or especially realistic expression; and as a method to communicate this through visual language, she has continued her works with the specific theme of PreciousMessage.

Lee Seung-hoon, Cyart Research Institute

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KIM, EUN-OK

2012 ( , ) POST (, )2011 - (, , ) - (, ) - (,) 2010 - (, ) ART WAVE- (, )2009 (, ) & (, ) (, )2008 (, )

2012 , ( , ) (, ) KIAF (, ) Their Story in REALISM (, ) -, , (, ) ( ,)2011 1st Anniversary ( , ) RED DOT MIAMI ART FAIR (Kips Gallery-, ) WEST INSIDE EAST (Andrewshire Gallery-, LA) - (, ) SOAF- (-, ) Heroes! (, ) 100Pieces (, )2010 INSA ART FESTIVAL ART to DESIGN (, ) unique&useful (, ) -White Sale (, ) (, ) - (, ) - , (, ) II- ( , ) chocolate box- (, ) 33 (, )2009 - (, ) 9-Emotion (, ) - (, ) - (, ) Peace Dream Arts Festival (CAS, ) -, (Bonn , ) SOAF (-, ) Asian Art Top Show - 2009` Art Fair (, )2008 (, ) - (, ) 3- (, )

Born in 1971, Chunbuk, South Korea/Warks and lives in Anyang, South KoreaM.F.A. Graduated in Painting at Hongik University, SeoulGraduated in Painting at Inchon University, Inchon

Solo Exhibitions & Art Fairs2011 LOTTE GALLERY Invitational - The Solo Exhibition by Kim, Eun-ok (lotte gallery, Anyang, Gwangju) Art Gallery Sena Invitational - The Solo Exhibition by Kim, Eun-ok (Art Gallery Sena, Seoul ) Soul Art Space Invitational - The Solo Exhibition by Kim, Eun-ok (Soul Art Space, Pusan)2010 SOOHOH Gallery Invitational - The Precious Message Exhibition (Soohoh Gallery, Seoul) ART WAVE Invitational -The Precious Message Exhibition (Topohaus, Seoul)2009 Sejong Gallery Invitational -The Solo Exhibition by Kim, Eun-ok (Sejong Gallery, Seoul) Solo Exhibition- Gong Gallery & Artgate Gallery Invitational Exhibition (Gong Gallery, Seoul) Korean Figuration Grand Festival (Seoul Arts Center, Seoul)2008 Golden Eye Art Fair (COEX, Seoul)

Selected Group Exhibitions2011 1st Anniverasry Exhibition (Galleria Centercity, Cheonan) RED DOT MIAMI ART FAIR (Kips Gallery, USA) West Inside East (Andrewshire Gallery, LA) The Seoul Art Exhibition 2011 (Seoul Museum) Heroes! Exhibition (GanaArt Pusan, Pusan) 100Pieces -Exhibition (insa Gallery , seoul)2010 INSA ART FESTIVAL ART to DESIGN (Insa art Center, seoul) unique&useful- Exhibition (in.ter alia, seoul) Art Sydney (Royal Hall of Industries, Moore Park , Sydney , Australia) The Exhibition by hyperrealism (Hyundai Arts Center, ulsan) BUSAN BIENNALE - Exhibition of Hyperrealism Artists of Korea, China, Japan (Busan city Hall) Chocolate Box-All the Scenes of the World (Jangheung Artpark Museum) Sun Gallery 33rd Anniversary Exhibition (Sun Gallery, Seoul) TIME MACHINE Exhibition (Erl Gallery, Seoul) Korean Hyper Realism Exhibition (Gimhoe Arts Center, Gimhoe)2009 9-Emotion (Dong Won Gallery, Daegu) Korean Hyperealism Scene Exhibition (Seongnam Arts Center, Seongnam ) Gwangju Design Biennale-Well as we expect (Gwangju Biennale Exhibition Room, Gwangju) PEACE DREAM Arts Festival:Korea-Spain (CAS Fundacion Tres Culturas, Spain) SOAF Seoul Open Art Fair (COEX, Seoul) Asian Art Top Show - 2009` Art Fair (Beijing, China)2008 SamTeo Window Gallery Opening Commemoration Invitational Exhibition (SamTeo Gallery, Seoul) Yeosoo International Art Festival (Yeosoo Jinnam Culture & Literature Center, Yeosoo)

Cell phone: +82-10-2330-1662E-mail: [email protected]@yahoo.co.krBlog: blog.naver.com/art765280

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