Kim Myoung Jin studied Oriental painting at Daegu Arts University before dropping out in 1998. Over the following 15 years, he worked as a storybook illustrator, tattooist and painter. In 2013, after his first and last exhibition at rented space, he considered giving up painting. But soon after his encounter with Galerie Gaia located in Seoul’s Jongno district, he has been creating art ever since. Kim’s unique background is reflected in his whimsical characters and the black and white landscape-like spaces that make them stand out.

He described his artistic perspective as “the act of expressing the reverie which expands our lives.” He went on stating, “In the past, I created a drawing piece called Edgewalker (a person who walks on the edge, facing challenges courageously and always being the first to encounter new things). For that piece, I expressed myself in this intense explosion of imagination. Recently, I’ve been making drawings under the theme ‘A Space Odyssey,’ for which I’ve been using various techniques, including matière, doodles, and drawing.”

Kim’s characters are based on motifs from things like whales, sausages, and gummies. These characters reflect Kim’s personal philosophy that art is always close to our lives and should impart happiness and hope. Kim also merges art history into his pieces. He explains that his black and white stone-like backgrounds harken back to stone age cave paintings, and his detailed pen and ink drawings evoke the illustration technique that emerged with the invention of printing technology in the Middle Ages.

The pieces he is putting forward for this Kiaf SEOUL 2023 HIGHLIGHT are under the theme of ‘Edgewalker-A space Odyssey’. In these pieces, he has taken his vast array of characters, such as Jellyman, Candygirl, and Wizard, with the big Whale at the center, and used various painting techniques to transfer their diverse narratives to a thick canvas layered with paint. Kim stated, “these pieces tell the story of the protagonists departing on a journey in search of hope. They also embody the message that we are all precious protagonists of our own lives and my wish for us all to be happy on our journeys through life.”

Edgewalker-A Space Odyssey, 91x117cm, mixed media on canvas, 2023

Kim lost his father and faced hardships at an early age. He enjoyed painting from a young age, but without the money to attend professional art education, he had to study on his own. However, he continued to paint while doing various part-time jobs. Ups and downs marked Kim’s life, but his pieces are overflowing with humor. He stated, “I’ve had a rich imagination from a young age, and I felt like the things in my everyday life were part of a fun little story,” adding on, “What I do is to express my own unique whimsical narratives onto canvas.”

“I’ve dedicated my whole life to painting. My goal is to bring happiness and joy to my viewers, and I aim to continue working diligently on my art.”

Myoungjin KIM Solo Exhibition View