The
World of Cheerful Excitement and Mystery
by Ham Sae Jin
Kim Jae
Im says that the Korean characteristics, cheerful excitement, rhythm
and motion are the most important elements in her works. Trying to
learn traditional mask dance or corolla dance and Korean drum, Kim
makes efforts to steep herself in the worlds of Korean rhythm and
cheerful excitement. The risen we feel the Korean rhythm from her
brushwork is that she fills here canvases with overlapping touches
of hand motion that are led by such cheerful excitement and that flow
like water. When she moves her world that is filled with the rhythm
of mysterious life gets to be opened. Thus, the Korean sentiment such
cheerful excitement or delight in the most crucial element to form
the world of Kim's art.
The questions are, where does the spirit of cheerful excitement come
from and what is its nature and meaning? Does the cheerful excitement
spring from inner mind without self-consciousness and effort? Kim's
spirit of excitement that forms the base if her work is not gained
naturally. In fact it is emanated as result of her persistent self-consciousness
desire and effort and for her earnest desire, the spirit of excitement
becomes as natural as breath for her.
When one leaves his or her mind neglected, one can only get gloomy
and harsh sentiment such as disillusionment and loneliness. In the
chaotic world of disillusion and antagonism, it is only natural to
get such dark emotions in one's mind.
Kim's cheerful excitement is not something that is gained gratuitously
but it is something that is aroused by the persistent longing and
effort for purification through the burning, sweeping away and wiping
off of the dark emotions which are deposited at the bottom of her
mind. As Kim says, painting is the driving power for overcoming the
difficulties in her life and her desire for overcoming the pressure
of darkness changes her emotions into such a cheerful excitement.
In her cheerful excitement, there is an earnest longing for rain,
wind and sunshine which will wipe off "han (peculiar sentiment
of the Korean such as sorrow)" for the Korean people including
herself.
If the darkness disappear from the inside, our minds turns into an
empty space like clear blue sky filled with only the heavenly light
and wind. The cheerful excitement that tries to drive away the darkness
result in silence and serenity. Free and emptiness in which no restraint
or fear exist in the state of mind that Kim wants to attain through
the spirit of cheerful excitement.
Only through the empty mind, one can experience and feel the heavenly
mysterious light of life. As the titles of Kim's works Creation and
Mystery suggest, her religious experience of mystery is another important
element in her work. The experience of mysterious light enables one
to realize that the life of human being is not finite but expands
infinitely beyond life and death, and time and space.
Kim's works that visualize such experiences are different from those
based on the Korean sentiment of cheerful excitement in that they
convey the feeling of silence, blankness and mystery.
Kim states that in comparison with her heavy, dark and radical abstract
expressionism works of the past, her recent works have serene quality
with brighter colors and full of confidence. This kind of change is
not due to her age, but rather due to her experience of mystery. The
ultimate goal that Kim is pursuing through her work is to dissolve
all the oppositions such as you and I, life and death and time and
space, and to demonstrate that everything is one life.
What matters the most in Kim's work is the depth of her sensitivity
that enables the viewer to feel her intention. It can be obtained
only when she is faithful to her intention, accepting the great pain
of creation. I hope that the fire of cheerful excitement she initiates
will burn scars in the deep place of her mind, burn the darkness of
the disunion and melt down walls of frozen severance.
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