Pioneering Korean sculptor Kim Yun Shin has opened a solo exhibition at Lehmann Maupin Seoul in Hannam-dong.
Titled In the Continuum, the exhibition runs from Nov. 5 through Dec. 24. It brings together more than 30 works, including sculptures, paintings and what Kim describes as “painting-sculptures.” www.lehmannmaupin.com
Born in 1935, Kim is regarded as one of the first-generation women sculptors in Korean modern art. The 91-year-old artist continues to work with wood in her studio, using tools including a chainsaw to carve and divide its surfaces.
Kim began using wood as a principal material in the 1970s. Her practice examines natural forms, organic cycles and the relationship between division and unity through a physically demanding process of cutting, joining and reshaping timber.
The exhibition includes a new painting series titled Light of the Soul. Kim builds layers of paint on canvas before scraping, pressing and attaching materials to the surface, using repetition and accumulated marks to address movement and growth in nature.
Also on view is the Tree Full of Songs series. Although the works resemble brightly painted wooden sculptures, they were cast in bronze or aluminum and subsequently painted by the artist.
Kim began translating her wooden sculptures into metal to improve their durability for outdoor display. The process preserves the forms of the original carvings while allowing color and painted gestures to become part of the sculptural surface.
The resulting works occupy a space between painting and sculpture. Their cast forms retain traces of Kim’s woodcarving practice, while their painted surfaces introduce additional layers of color and pattern.
The exhibition extends across the gallery’s two floors and places recent works alongside pieces produced during Kim’s decades in South America. The arrangement traces the continuity of her interest in material, physical labor and the structures of the natural world.
Kim moved to Argentina in the 1980s and worked across South America for approximately four decades. She returned permanently to South Korea in 2024 and has since continued producing sculpture and painting from her Korean studio.
Earlier this year, the Hoam Museum of Art presented a major solo exhibition devoted to Kim’s work. A documentary about the artist, Kim Yun Shin Punches In, was also screened at the Busan International Film Festival.
In the Continuum is on view at Lehmann Maupin Seoul, located at 213 Itaewon-ro in Yongsan District, Seoul, through Dec. 24.
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Maria Kim sayart2022@gmail.com
