KIM JOON
GALLERY MISSION Established in 2000, Sundaram Tagore Gallery is devoted to examining the exchange of ideas between Western and non-Western cultures. We focus on developing exhibitions and hosting not-for-profit events that encourage spiritual, social and aesthetic dialogues. In a world where communication is instant and cultures are colliding and melding as never before, our goal is to provide venues for art that transcend boundaries of all sorts. With alliances across the globe, our interest in cross-cultural exchange extends beyond the visual arts into many other disciplines, including poetry, literature, performance art, film and music.
new york • beverly hills • hong kong • singapore
K I M J O O N has been using the human body as his canvas in one form or another
for most of his career. Whether with tattoos
on digitally enhanced flesh or luxury-brand imagery on porcelain figurines, he has deftly managed to both celebrate and
question consumer culture. With his newest series, Blue Jean Blues, he moves into new, more self-revelatory territory. Art historian Michaël Amy talks to the artist, who works in Seoul, Korea, about his latest images. With the Fragile series of 2010, you moved from making figures with human-looking and tattooed skin, to figures that are fashioned out of porcelain. This constituted a major shift for you. Why did you opt for porcelain? What prompted that move? Also, explain to us how you produce your work? I am inspired by how carefully my wife handles her collection of porcelain. Porcelain, which is very fragile, symbolizes how unstable and weak we are. We require religion to sustain ourselves. Religion is like a tattoo that is etched upon our minds, and porcelain is covered with patterns, which resemble, in a way, tattoos. This is how I understand my wife’s collection of porcelain—which, by the way, she rarely uses. I use a 3D computer program to produce the human bodies and porcelain pieces, and on top of these, I superimpose the types of patterns we find on porcelain. Porcelain is loaded with cultural significance. It is far more than just fragile. Indeed it is. However, the fragility of this medium is what I highlight in my porcelain works, for this is what I draw from my life. I accept most of life’s chance occurrences. These affect the directions my work takes.
Blue Jean Blues – O Yun (detail), 2012, digital print, 82.7 x 47.2 inches
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The Belgian artist Wim Delvoye has also worked with tattoos, with motifs drawn from porcelain, and with digitally tweaked images. Has his work inspired you? If not, which artists, writers and/or thinkers have influenced your thinking? I began working with tattoos in 1995. I get most of my inspiration from daily life, as well as from movies and music—and not from other artists, or writers. My art cannot be separated from my everyday life—I would feel uncomfortable if it were. In fact, my life and my art are so inextricably linked to each other that I need to produce my work at home, where I live with my family. The cozy atmosphere at home introduces a degree of warmth and humanity into my cold-blooded technology-based style. With the Fragile, Drunken, and Golden Hour series, you superimposed the logos of luxury-brands on top of figures and objects made of porcelain. You have said that such symbols address issues of desire, the drive to acquire, and the need to articulate and project one’s identity. Why have you selected mostly Western brands? What do such brands mean within Korean culture? I selected Western brands because these are so very popular. Many Koreans desire name brands. So many things became popular by being highlighted in the mass media. Television, magazines and the internet function in my view like huge tattoo machines, superimposing ideas and images upon our individual consciousnesses, and making us look more and more the same. Do you consider contemporary Korean culture to be infantile, as Takashi Murakami famously considers modern and contemporary Japanese culture to be, as a result of the paternalistic treatment of the Japanese people by the American victor after WWII? Korean culture is progressive, rather than immature. I am witnessing the advancement of Korean culture. These developments I experience have enhanced my work. Are you critiquing, or are you glorifying, modern and contemporary mass culture? I follow the tattoo that is engraved in my mind. I metaphorically compare weak and doubtful human beings to porcelain, and add religion, name brands, popular imagery, and my family to the mix. Through my work, I raise questions about what we depend upon. I take comfort in how we live our lives with these types of values. Mass culture is my energy source. I depend upon it, and take comfort in it. I do not consider popular culture to be a low level art form and the fine arts to be a higher art form. Instead, in my view, these constitute two different cultures. With your new Blue Jean Blues series, the imagery has become seemingly more personal. Why this shift? Why have you chosen these specific references to music, movies, and pop culture? Are these references deeply personal choices, or do they instead make a great deal of sense within contemporary Korean culture? As my work increases in popularity, I become more aware of my audience. I wanted to go back and express my story. The images in this series depict the things I was enthusiastic about when I was in my teens and twenties, such as certain types of music and certain movies. American culture was grafted onto me, like a tattoo. My entire generation was deeply influenced by American culture. I discovered a lot of American music and movies through the American Forces Network, which we were forbidden to access. The United States profoundly influenced Korea’s modernization, both politically and culturally. You have stated that much of the imagery in the Blue Jean Blues series is about rebellion. However, to many of us in the West, these references appear nostalgic rather than rebellious. What did these references mean to you, as a youth?
My audience will experience nostalgia when it sees my work. For me, as an artist, jeans represent youth, rebellion, a desire for freedom and an escape from everyday life. Blue jeans were at one time an incredibly powerful symbol of freedom and youth culture. What did they represent in Korea? In Korea, when you see a middle-aged man wearing blue jeans, you think that he is not behaving in an age-appropriate fashion. When you get older and are gainfully employed in Korea, you need to wear formal dress. I sense an abnormal amount of attention when I wear blue jeans in Korea. The images that appear in Blue Jean Blues tell the stories of other artists and musicians, and reference the cultural influences that have had special meaning in my life. Three themes are mixed together in Blue Jean Blues. The first one has to do with the things from my youth, which were tucked away deep in my memory. The second theme has to do with movies and music, which served to trigger my memories. The films I reference help illustrate the music that accompanies each of my themes. The third theme is a scene from my life. I show my life by wrapping it up in the form of a recollection. Take for example Red Bubble. The title of this work consists in a combination of the words “red wine” and “bubble bath.” Through this work, I re-imagine taking a bubble bath while drinking red wine. This work emphasizes the degree to which we depend on small things in order to survive. Sailing, on the other hand, is about a father’s joys and sorrows, as he does everything he possibly can to support his family—rather than rebel against society. Could you explain the role of blue jeans, tautly stretched but actually devoid of bodies, in your recent compositions? These blue jeans have a life of their own in your virtual environments. In my virtual spaces, blue jeans represent eternal youth, never having to work, and only doing things one wants to do—like hippies. Could you tell us something more about your process, using 3D Max? It’s a highly intricate program, and you manage to create very specific and complex effects through it. I will tell you why I have gone digital. My earlier work required a physical space; this was one of the stresses I had to deal with as an artist. As my work developed, I needed more space, and managing a studio was far from being an easy task. Happily, advances in digital technology freed me from all this stress. Three-D graphic work allows me to develop enormous projects in artificial space. The only physical space I need is room for the desk I work at. My work is saved digitally, so I do not need to deal with actual storage space. I now do all my work at home. O Yun, from the Blue Jean Blues series, is about the Korean artist by the same name who made a deep impression upon you, as he was part of the democracy movement. Tell me more. The artist O Yun enlightened me. He was like that first blast of punk rock music I heard while I was studying modernism in college. The work titled O Yun pays homage to this artist, who made me realize that art can be more than just art. Art can influence politics and society. Your work is about fragmentation, or fracture, the unexpected juxtaposition of seemingly antithetical entities, as in Surrealism, and patterning. Please tell me more. In the real world, we cannot be separated from our bodies. I, however, want to break free, although I know this is physically impossible. However, by means of the fragmentation of the body, I express this desire to break free. My body ages, while my mind longs to stay young. Harsh reality is embedded in my Blues. The name of my daughter, Pabi, the inheritor of my bygone youth, is engraved on my blue jeans.
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Drunken – Johnnie Walker 2011, digital print, 47 x 82.7 inches
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Drunken – Château Latour 2011, digital print, 27.5 x 27.5 inches
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Drunken – MoÍt Chandon 2011, digital print, 82.7 x 47 inches
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Drunken – Dom PÊrignon 2011, digital print, 47.5 x 76 inches
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Drunken – Absolut Vodka 2011, digital print, 82.7 x 47 inches
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Drunken – Ballantine’s 2011, digital print, 82.7 x 47 inches
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Drunken – Gone with the Wind 2011, digital print, 47 x 82.7 inches
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Golden Hour – Starbucks 2011, digital print, 47 x 27.5 inches
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Golden Hour – Cartier 2011, digital print, 47 x 27.5 inches
Golden Hour – Maria 2011, digital print, 27.5 x 47 inches
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Golden Hour – Meissen 2011, digital print, 27.5 x 27.5 inches
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Golden Hour – Romeo & Juliet 2011, digital print, 47 x 27.5 inches
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Golden Hour – Jesus 2011, digital print, 68.9 x 39.4 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – Doors 2012, digital print, 47 x 27.5 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – Jimi Hendrix 2012, digital print, 68.9 x 39.4 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – Rocky Horror Picture Show 2012, digital print, 27.5 x 47 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – Taxi Driver 2012, digital print, 47 x 27.5 inches
Blue Jean Blues – Rocker 2012, digital print, 47 x 82.7 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – Playboy 2012, digital print, 39.4 x 39.4 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – Playboy 2012, digital print, 23.6 x 23.6 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – Rebel without a Cause 2012, digital print, 47.2 x 82.7 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – Sailing 2012, digital print, 15.7 x 30 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – Akira 2012, digital print, 68.9 x 39.4 inches
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Blue Jean Blues – O Yun 2012, digital print, 82.7 x 47.2 inches
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Rocker – Pink Floyd 2012, digital print, 27.2 x 34.3 inches (oval)
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Rocker – Kiss 2012, digital print, 27.2 x 34.3 inches (oval)
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Drunken – Royal Copenhagen 2012, digital print, 39.4 x 39.4 inches
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Red Bubble 1 2012, digital print, 39.4 x 39.4 inches
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Red Bubble 2 2012, digital print, 39.4 x 39.4 inches
CURRICULUM VITAE Born in Seoul, South Korea, 1966 EDUCATION
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
BA Painting, Hongik University, Seoul MA Painting, Hongik University, Seoul
2010 2009 2008 2007 2006
SOLO EXHIBITIONS 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2003 2000 1999 1998 1997 1995 1994
Blue Jean Blues, Sundaram Tagore Gallery, New York Blue Jean Blues, art link, Seoul Fragile, Canvas International Art, Amsterdam Drunken, Sundaram Tagore Gallery, Hong Kong Drunken, Artlink Gallery, Seoul Fragile, Sundaram Tagore Gallery, New York Tattoo and Taboo, Sundaram Tagore Gallery, Beverly Hills, Tattoo and Taboo, Sundaram Tagore Gallery, Hong Kong Tattoo and Taboo, Sundaram Tagore Gallery, New York Bird Land, Sabina Lee Gallery, Los Angeles Kim Joon, Box Art Gallery, Verona, Italy Duet et Party, Galerie Bertin-Toublanc, Paris Miami, Florida Stay, Space 355, Tokyo Party, Touch Art, Heiri, Korea Duet, Canvas International Art Gallery, Amsterdam Tattoo You, Alexander Ochs Galleries, Berlin Tattoo You, Walsh Gallery, Chicago Tattoo You, Savina Museum, Seoul Flesh Park, June & Ttl Zone, Seoul Sauna Bell, Ilju Art House, Seoul Make Me Smile! Gallery Uduck, Seoul Fire, Total Museum, Seoul Hair Show, Gallery Sal, Seoul Tattoo in My Mind, Kumho Museum, Seoul Tattoo, Gallery Segae, Seoul I Love It!, Gallery Yale, Seoul I Love It!, Gallery Insa, Seoul
Rasa: Contemporary Asian Art, Sundaram Tagore Gallery, Beverly Hills New Creative Constructions, Sundaram Tagore Gallery, New York Korean Eye: Moon Generation, Saatchi Gallery, London Conditions of Being—As of Now, Korean Cultural Service, Beijing From Younhee Dong Yhd, Seoul Paris Photo, Keumsan Gallery, Paris Pop & Pop, Seongnam Art Center, Seongnam, Korea Scope Basel, Sun Contemporary, Basel Border of Virtuality—Korean and Chinese Media Art Now, Han Ji Yun Contemporary Space, Beijing Art HK, Keumsan Gallery, Hong Kong Photo...Photo?, Sun Contemporary, Seoul Being Now, Gallery Soheon, Daegu, Korea World-Beaters, Gallery Soheon, Daegu, Korea Asian Art Biennial, National Taiwan Museum Ocultos, Fundacion Canal, Madrid Field of Life, California State University, Sacramento New Asian Waves, Zkm Museum of Contemporary Art, Karlsruh, Germany Text in Body Space, Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul Giant in Illusion, Sejong Museum, Seoul Intermediae-Minbak, Matadero Madrid, Madrid Arco, Gallery Hyundai, Madrid Paris Photo, Gallery Hyundai, Paris Made in Korea, Paris, Annecy, France Hybrid Traend-India & Korea, Hangaram Art Museum, Seoul Art & Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing Spotlight 30 Women, Paper Gallery, Seoul Asia Art Now, Ssamzie Space, Seoul Softness, Soma Museum, Seoul Isea, South Hall, San Jose, California
2005 2004 2003 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996
Art/37/Basel, Gallery Hyundai, Basel Contemporary Asian Art, Bonhams, London Kunstrai/Art Amsterdam, Amsterdam Endless Clone, Space Ieum, Art Beijing, Beijing Toronto International Art Fair Art Cologne Art Forum Berlin Asia: The Place to Be?, Alexander Ochs Galleries, Berlin, Cosmo Cosmetic, Space C, Seoul Pop, Pop, Pop, Gana Art Gallery, Seoul Love Virus, Art Center Nabi, Cyworld, Seoul Gawngju Biennale Minority, Gwangju, Korea Inked, Walsh Gallery, Chicago Realing 15 Years, Savina Museum, Seoul Relative Reality, Walsh Gallery, Chicago Resfest Digital Film Festival, Seoul Crossing 2003; Korea/Hawaii, Koa Gallery, Hawaii Exhibition of the Artists of Seoul in France, Gallery Artitude, Paris Gawngju Biennale Scar, Gwangju Folklore Museum, Gwangju, Korea Ocean Art Festival, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, Seoul Taboo-Brutality, Violence & Fantasy, Total Museum, Seoul Money, Money, Money, Savina Museum, Seoul Humans and the Doll, Total Museum, Seoul Korea Underground Cartoon Festival, Kumho Museum, Seoul Body as Text, Kumho Museum, Seoul Young Venture 96, National Museum, Gwacheon, Korea Asia Pacific Triennale, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane
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SUNDARAM TAGORE GALLERIES new york new york beverly hills hong kong singapore
547 West 27th Street, New York, NY 10001 • tel 212 677 4520 fax 212 677 4521• gallery@sundaramtagore.com 1100 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10028 • tel 212 288 2889 9606 South Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90210 • tel 310 278 4520 fax 310 278 4525 • beverlyhills@sundaramtagore.com 57-59 Hollywood Road, Central, Hong Kong • tel 852 2581 9678 fax 852 2581 9673 • hongkong@sundaramtagore.com Nos. 01-05 Gillman Barracks, 5 Lock Road, Singapore 108933 • tel 65 9771 0554 • singapore@sundaramtagore.com
President and curator: Sundaram Tagore Director, New York: Susan McCaffrey Director, Hong Kong: Faina Goldstein Designer: Russell Whitehead Printed in Iceland by Oddi Printing
Art consultants: John Haas Teresa Kelley Joseph Lawrence Benjamin Rosenblatt Melanie Taylor
www.sundaramtagore.com Special thanks to Michaël J. Amy, who interviewed Kim Joon for this catalogue. Amy is an art historian, critic, lecturer and curator with a BA from the Department of Art History and Archaeology at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, and an MA and PhD from New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts. He is a Professor of Art History in the College of Imaging Arts & Sciences at Rochester Institute of Technology. His articles have appeared in the New York Times, Burlington Magazine, Art in America, Art & Antiques, ARTnews, Apollo, Art on Paper, Art China, and the New York Sun. Special thanks, also, to Eun Gyeong Ko, for translating the artist's responses from Korean into English. First published in the United States in 2012 by Sundaram Tagore Gallery Text © Sundaram Tagore Gallery Images © Kim Joon All rights reserved under international copyright conventions. No part of this catalogue may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any other information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. Cover: Drunken – Romanée-Conti (detail), 2011, digital print, 47 x 66 inches ISBN-13: 978-0-9839631-4-1