Minjung Kim

Minjung Kim White Cube

A survey exhibition of works by Korean artist Minjung Kim at White Cube Mason’s Yard gallery.

Traditionally trained in Korean watercolour painting and calligraphy from the age of nine, Kim is among the few female heirs of the Dansaekhwa (Korean monochrome painting) movement, having studied under one of its masters, Park Seo-Bo, at Hong Ik University, Seoul. This major exhibition is the first truly comprehensive presentation of Kim’s work in the UK to date and includes paintings from series drawn from across her career, which reflect her refined minimalist language and highlight her focused exploration of abstraction and serial process.

Kim was born in Korea in 1962 but in the early 1990s, following an abrupt change in her personal circumstances, she moved to Europe, initially to Milan, where she studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera. Kim has since lived and worked in Italy, France and, more recently, America but continues to employ the traditional Korean material of hanji in her work. Hanji is a significant choice for the artist since it is deeply rooted within Korean culture. Much favoured by the Danseakhwa artists, for centuries it has been used not only for painting, crafts and calligraphy but also for clothing and shoes and as a replacement for glass in the windows and doors of traditional houses. Made from the dried, inner bark of the paper mulberry tree using a complex and labour intensive process, it has a tactile surface reminiscent of skin and is characteristically strong with wide fibres, allowing air and light to pass through it. In Kim’s work, hanji is often marked by burning the edges or centre with an incense stick or a candle and then superimposed, layer by layer, using a collage technique. ‘Burning came about from my exploration of lines’ she has said, ‘I could feel the power of nature in using fire, but also a different sense of control.’

Duration 26 January 2018 - 10 March 2018
Times Tuesday - Saturday 10am - 6pm
Cost Free
Venue White Cube - Mason's Yard
Address 25-26 Mason's Yard (Off Duke Street), London, SW1Y 6BU
Contact 2079305373 / enquiries@whitecube.com / www.whitecube.com

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