About

“In the work, everything is transparent and there are no lies. All of the layers are seen in the finished work, all layers are revealed in the whole. I hope that the work will touch each individual, and inspire many forms of purity and nostalgia.”

I believe that today could not have existed without the past. And the future inches closer as each day passes. As such, I am the collective embodiment of all the experiences that I have encountered throughout my life. I studied traditional Korean fine arts in Korea and spent 13 years in the U.S., immersing myself in the world of art and working in a museum. The time I spent in the U.S. will always be a special part of my life. I learned so much during that period and helped me grow as an artist and person, while enriching my deep appreciation of the beauty found within Korea. 

Today, something that’s labeled as “traditional” is viewed to be old-fashioned and worn-out. What would people think if I they saw me painting with natural lacquer, which is a form of painting that dates back thousands of years? I suppose they would think that it’s not possible. Our ancestors in Korea knew very well about natural lacquer’s characteristics such as durability, resistance to water, oil, and chemicals, and more. So natural lacquer was used for weaponry, housing, furniture, and household goods. Due to its rarity, natural lacquer was available only to the upper class. In more recent times, natural lacquer could be found on furniture with inlaid mother of pearl within the home of the average family. But in today’s modern world, it’s rarely seen as people’s lifestyle has changed to be more reflective of Western culture. Natural lacquer paintings may be viewed as running against the grain of today’s infatuation with fast food and fast fashion, but I believe that art is supposed to break barriers and challenge the status quo. 

The art of painting with natural lacquer requires skill and patience. There’s an old saying of “more haste, less speed.” I think my work is the exact epitome of those words. In my experience, a hasty mind ruins the work. It usually takes up to twenty applications of lacquer and then polishing it just to prepare the surface for the drawing itself. While I go through this tedious process, I remind myself of the beauty in the end result to keep driving me forward. I find painting with natural lacquer to very honest.It shows exactly how much effort I put into my work, no more, no less. The natural lacquer doesn’t lie either. It’s difficult for this reason but that’s what deepens the attraction for me. Now I find myself more straightforward with my work. The painting is created with natural lacquer, which is painstakingly extracted from lacquer trees. The material ossifies while responding to the seasons, weather, temperature, and humidity. So every batch of paint is different and has its own unique characteristics. ​I have to “listen” to the lacquer and respond to its characteristics with greater sensitivity, which I often ignored. I continue to communicate with my paintings from the moment my brush touches the surface and until I consider the work to be done. I’m constantly shaping and redefining this new world of art into my own.

전통이 고루하고 진부하다고 여기는 사람들이 많은 이 시대에서 수천 년을 내려온 옻칠(natural lacquer)을 가지고 그림을 그린다면 사람들은 어떻게 생각할까? ‘옻칠로 그림을?’ 이라 생각하는 사람들이 많을 거라 생각이 든다.

예로부터 우리 선조들은 옻칠의 내구성과 우수성을 알기에 무기, 건축물, 가구, 집기류 등 상류층의 전유물로 많이 사용되었다. 우리 조부모님, 부모님 세대에는 흔히 옻칠을 사용한 자개장을 볼 수 있었다. 그러나 서구문화가 급속도로 퍼져가면서, 우리의 생활모습, 습관들도 많이 바뀌어가며 하나 둘씩 사라져 지금은 보기 힘든 것이 사실이다. 패스트푸드, 패스트 패션이 유행하는 이 시대에 옻칠그림이란 어쩌면 시대에 역행하는 작업이라 할 수 있겠다.

옻칠은 기다림의 미학이다. 옛말에 급할수록 돌아가라는 말이 있다. 옻칠이 그러한 것 같다. 마음이 급해 서두르면 그르치기 십상이다. 그림을 그리기 위한 밑 작업만 해도 20번 내외의 칠하고 갈아내는 등 여러 공정이 반복된다. 그러한 작업을 거치면서 그 위에 그려질 그림을 생각하고 또 생각하며 작업을 해나간다.

옻칠은 너무나도 솔직하다. 더도 덜도 없이 내가 한 만큼만 보여준다. 거짓이 없다. 그래서 힘든 작업이지만 하면 할수록 그 매력에 나 자신도 빠져드는 것 같다. 나 또한 작업을 하면서 나의 작업에 대해 매우 솔직해진다.

옻칠은 자연 그 자체이다. 옻나무에서 어렵게 얻어진 수액으로 그려지는 옻칠 그림은 그림을 그리는 계절과 날씨, 온도, 습도에 민감하게 반응하면서 경화되기 때문에 나 자신도 예전에는 그냥 지나쳐버릴 수 있었던 자연환경 변화에 더 민감하게 반응하게 된다.

미세한 환경변화에 솔직하게 반응하며 보여주는 나의 그림과 나는 작업이 시작되면서부터 끝나는 순간까지 서로 무언의 대화를 주고받으며 한 단계 한 단계, 차곡차곡 쌓아 나아가는 것 같다.