Heat penetrates Yoel Kim‘s most recent oeuvre, in which tangled masses of limbs and swans are depicted in rich palettes of red, pink and orange.
With dense lines in acrylic paint, the Seoul-based artist explores the interactions between living beings and their sometimes contradictory desires. Her new paintings unite fragmented iterations of human figures with graceful black and white birds, monsteras and ferns to explore peace and equality.
“I wanted to express the beauty of being able to care for the weak and care for each other, without a sense of superiority and inferiority in living beings defined by the world,” Kim tells Colossal. “By hugging, touching or leaning on each other, I emphasized the meaning of connection and warmth.”
Like previous bodies of work, this series similarly explores the fractured nature of the self. Kim says she feels calmer and calmer these days, which is reflected in the way figures reach out to embrace each other.
“I also wanted to express that I have a lot of egos and personalities within me; I am a human being full of complexity who cannot comprehend existence as a whole,” she adds. “I always think about myself.”
Kim will show paintings in several exhibitions this spring, the first of which opens in March Hall Spassov in Seattle. Find more of her work at Instagram.
