Kim Jung Man
Commentary
Jung-Man KIM - Somewhere out there
Suejin Shin, Ph. D (Psychology of Photography)
Photography is a memoranda which reflect every spectrum of life to photographer Jung Man Kim (1954~) who has been taking photography for 30 years. His works of landscape, still life, people and fashion proves that he¡¯s been a much devoted photographer throughout his life; the sky and the sea which depict sorrow and excitement, still life that has a real scent of existence, people interacting with each other, and other works that arouse a passion for the novelty and beauty.
The youth of Jung Man Kim can be described as a time of endless curiosity and challenges to the unreachable. In his early works and photographs of landscapes, he is shown as ¡°an explorer of the dark¡±. He was in search of something from where nothing could be seen and that¡¯s why almost all of his works in a mono-tone. Such dark mood of his work moved people.
On the other hand, his recent works of objects places everything in the center under a bright light as if it were a famous person. After a long journey of misery, he learns the flexibility and generosity of life and he tries to make peace with the world by giving his objects bright colors and clear lines.
In human photos, he denies the fantasy created by the lights and additional works. He only depicts the ambition people have, and the extreme and sensitive emotions that are not easily revealed. Before his camera, one must consider his own fame, but how truthful can be to himself.
Photographer Jung Man Kim never accepts or resists the present that is surrounding him. He only fights with himself. He doesn¡¯t lock himself up under his standards, but seeks to be a liberal artist. And even today, he looks far at the through the eye camera.
Destructive`
collaboration of photography, painting
2006-01-04 10:02 (excerpts from
newspaper)
Photographer Kim Jung-man is a talented artist who
manages to capture the deep emotions of human beings and the subtle images of
still-life.
To the public, he is known as a "star photographer" who captures
exclusive and uncommon images of many popular celebrities.
Born in 1954, Kim studied art in France and was awarded as the emerging artist
of 1977 at the Arles International Festival of Photography.
After working with renowned French fashion magazines Elle and Vogue for a
couple of years, Kim returned to Korea in 1979, meeting Korean fans
with his unique photography skills.
By Shin Hae-in
Photographer Kim Jung-man: Taking the `Ultimate Road'
By Lee Hyo-won Staff Reporter
``The Road Not Taken'' (1915) by Robert Frost perhaps best describes the new
path Korea's celebrated photographer Kim Jung-man has embarked on. The
photographer is as famous as the celebrity figures that appear in his work, but
there came a moment when he arrived at a crossroads.
He chose to step out of the limelight to pour his heart and soul into fine art
photography ¡ª ``the ultimate road as a photographer.''
``I had to choose, whether to earn more money and make more social connections,
or to give it all up ¡ª which wasn't easy by the way ¡ª and take the road of no
return,'' Kim said in an exclusive interview with The Korea Times.
``It is a battle with yourself. You choose your subject matter and invest your
time, money and passion, and there is no guarantee of success or failure,'' he
said. It also meant ``cutting off social connections and arriving at a point
where you aren't making any profit and can't even pay rent for the studio.''
But roads often take unexpected twists and turns. After exhibiting some of his
work in New York in March, he spent the
springtime in the Himalayas with the Hankook
Ilbo, the sister company of The Korea Times. Over the summer he was
commissioned by the Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism to capture images of
Korea for its campaign ``Korea Sparkling,'' and was able to discover the far corners
of his native country for the first time.
Born in Korea in 1954, Kim
spent his youth in Burkina Faso, West Africa, where his father was a
government-dispatched doctor. He recently returned to erect football goalposts
in the most poverty-stricken neighborhoods, starting from Cape
Town to Cairo.
Adidas Korea sponsored him on this four-year project, which he will continue next year.
Before he knew it, Kim had won the grand prize for a big advertisement photo
award for Samsung's Burj Tower in Dubai.
``It was the one commercial work I did, and before I knew it, I was dubbed
`commercial photographer Kim Jung-man,' '' he said. ``Two years ago I would
have been thrilled, but not at this point in my life.''
Kim's newfound career as a fine art photographer
however, would take flight when his hanbok (traditional Korean dress) series
created a stir at the Asian Contemporary Art Fair in New York last month.With all 10 editions of ``Cloth of Wind'' (1996) and ``Nipple'' (2006) sold out at prices way above the anticipated mark, it was a spectacular debut. This is Kim's first time participating in an art fair. He had previously avoided it out of respect, because as a commercial artist he felt it was not his ``turf.''
Kim had started the hanbok series more than a decade ago with esteemed hanbok designer Lee Young-hee. It was, above all, an enlightening experience. ``I was shooting fashion spreads with models sporting Chanel. But when I saw our models in hanbok, it came as a shock that our grandmothers and mothers can also be this beautiful.
``I believe this is the true image of Korea. The hanbok project transcends any commercial means or even my own artistic goals ¡ª it is the simple act of recording. Through this process of recording I came across the great artist Shin Youn-bok,'' he said.
Kim was inspired by antique pornographic postcards depicting breast-bearing
Korean women as well as erotic paintings by 18th century Joseon (1392-1910)
painter Shin Youn-bok.``Shin was extremely modern ¡ª the women's hair is let down loose and disheveled, and the breasts and hips are exposed ¡ª and being able to paint in such a way greatly inspired me,'' he said. Kim is currently working on the Shin Youn-bok series, which is a continuation of his hanbok series. He plans to exhibit the pieces at the New York art fair next fall.
``There is something holy and truly beautiful about hanbok-clad women. Of course, voyeurism pervades Shin's works, with Peeping Toms deliberately depicted in the painting. But I am portraying it with my own style. Maybe 100 years later another artist will express it differently.
``There is this aspect of sexuality and sensuality in it, but there is an innocence, and above all, a deeene of Korean pride. I believe this is what inspires my creativity,'' he said. As a Bloomberg TV interview suggests, Kim earned rave responses from Sotheby's and Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) collectors not because his subject matter seemed novel in the eyes of Westerners.
Rather, it is his ability to take the self and heritage to create something new and named that speaks to our generation ¡ª the language of photography. ``The ideal role of photography is storytelling, rather than simply translating a message,'' he said.
And what exactly is photography? ``It's not painting,'' said Kim, who was actually a Western painting major at Ecole Nationale d'Art Decoratif de Nice in France . ``You cannot manipulate lines on a whim, nor can you claim ownership of what you capture. Photography is the process of recording a world that is endlessly changing.
``To me, photography is more than life itself. It gives me great pleasure and I am grateful to be able to work at my age... I think I have a gained a bit of sincerity, which I lacked at a young age,'' he said.
His dream? ``To try really hard to become a good photographer. This is only the beginning,'' he said with a wink.