Minju Kim
Minju Kim is a multidisciplinary artist, born in South Korea and based in London. Her work has been exhibited internationally, including London, New York and Seoul.
She explores desire as a main subject matter alongside the concept of life and death, inspired by human anatomy and psychoanalytic theory. She has worked with Adidas London for celebrating Women’s Month in 2022 and her painting raised a significant amount of funding at the charity art auction held in Sotheby’s London in 2021.
Could you tell us more about your background and how you began creating art?
Art has always been a part of my life. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t creating or making something. Growing up in Korea in the 1990’s, it was a starting point of its prosperity for art and culture, helping to pave the way for artists like myself looking to absorb our culture yet expand our horizons.
Moving to London offered a broader landscape and perspective to my art. I was drawn to the philosophers Lacan and Freud who increasingly inform my work, whilst also maintaining a love for Japanese anime and surrealist art. My work represents a cross-section in my own life between a very personal journey of the body, life and death and a deeper understanding of my work in terms of style and subject matter.
What does your art aim to say to its viewers?
I was primarily focused on the human figure which reflects my medical journey and experience; in recent times I’m more focused on storytelling in my paintings. Stories that people are familiar with or often appear in dreams or daydreaming, illustrating the element of the human body and illusive scenes of human life.
Viewers can relate the story I’m trying to tell through my painting but not limited to one side, I want them to feel and recreate their own stories when they see my art.
Can you tell us about the process of creating your work? What is your daily routine when working?
Once I have a certain idea for the painting, I start mind-mapping the meaning of the painting, colour scheme and mood I want to represent. I usually do this process in the morning and sketch or make a collage before creating the actual painting.
What is the essential element in your art?
Reflection and provocation; my artwork is the reproduction and manifestation of my journey and the selection of what this contemporary society taught and showed.
In your opinion, what role does the artist have in society?
Artist is a medium who reflects the world, a mirror of society and culture, a spectrum who communicates visually from the surface of the medium they choose.
