Minjung Kim
b. 1962, Gwangju, Korea

Story

2026

Mixed media on mulberry Hanji paper
130.5 x 170 cm (51 3/8 x 66 7/8 in.) Framed: 147 x 187 x 6.5 cm (57 7/8 x 73 5/8 x 2 1/2 in.)

Provenance
The artist's studio.
Description

Minjung Kim is a Korean artist best known for her ink paintings by on paper which often incorporate elements of burning, layering and gluing, to create meditative compositions. Rooted in a deep knowledge of Eastern painting techniques, especially calligraphy and brush painting, Kim's practice weaves a line between formal and process-based techniques. She draws upon her fascination with Western abstraction - taking particular inspiration from 20th-century artists such as Lucio Fontana, Alberto Burri, Paul Klee and Franz Kline - to create paintings according to her unique aesthetic that synthesises Eastern and Western traditions.


Story, composed of hundreds of meticulously cut and positioned coloured pieces of mulberry Hanji paper, hovers between traditional Eastern art forms, abstraction and Op Art. The composition seems to ebb and flow before our eyes, with the artist creating an illusionistic sense of depth through the simple and meditative process of collage. The work is not only a testament to her dedicated approach but also her overall artistic vision, exploring opposing themes such as movement/stasis, absence/presence, creation/destruction.


Kim has exhibited at prominent worldwide museums and galleries, such as Fondation Maeght (2024-25); Princeton University Art Museum, New Jersey, USA (2020); Hill Art Foundation, New York, USA (2020); Langen Foundation, Neuss, Germany (2019); Gwangju Museum of Art, Gwangju, Korea (2018); Musée des Arts Asiatiques, Nice, France (2017); Hermès Foundation, Singapore (2017); OCI Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea (2015); Palazzo Caboto, Venice, Italy (2015); Oko, New York, USA (2014); Studio d'Arte Raffaelli, Trento, Italy (2014); MACRO (Museo d’Arte Contemporanea Roma), Rome, Italy (2012); the Henry Moore Institute, Leeds, UK (2008); Guanshanyue Art Museum, Shenzhen, China (2007); Fondazione Palazzo Bricherasio, Turin, Italy (2006); and Museo Comunale d’Arte Moderna Ascona, Ascona, Switzerland (2003). She also participated in the Gwangju Biennale (2004, 2018, 2023).


Kim's work is represented in numerous international public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA; British Museum, London, UK; Tate, London, UK; Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea; Fundación Helga de Alvear, Cáceres, Sapin; Swiss Re Art Collection, Zürich, Switzerland; Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, New York, USA; Asia Society Museum, New York, USA; Fondazione Palazzo Bricherasio, Turin, Italy; OCI Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea; and UniCredit Art Collection, Milan, Italy.


The artist currently lives and works between France and the United States.

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