Artist’s Note 20250716
Observing mundane life is the starting point of my artwork. People climb onto buses or take the subway to go to the same place—school or work—or maybe sometimes to the park, simply because there’s nowhere else to go. Most of the time, you see the same people every day. And what's worse, you might end up going to the same restaurant for most of your life. Some people see this as a disaster—but I don’t.
What do you think holds society together? I believe it’s the people who live the same life, day after day, for most of their lives. That’s why many artists like Claude Monet, Edward Hopper, and Giorgio Morandi focused on the scenes and objects we encounter in everyday life. It’s also why people are drawn to art that depicts the ordinary—because it resonates deeply.
As I continued observing the mundane, I started to sense something off. There are plant pots everywhere—even in public toilets. We use artificial eye drops to keep our eyes moisturized. I started thinking about how people innocently believe that pots and artificial gardens can bring nature back into city spaces. And how strange it is that we use so many artificial things to substitute for the real ones. But somehow, these substitutions seem to work—which is deeply ironic.
This brings me to the final part of my observation: looking beneath the surface. We’ve been using our hands since the beginning—doing all kinds of things that might seem purely manual. But am I the only one who sees a hint of erotic desire in how we use our hands?
Now, I find myself looking at the distant past—what we call mythology in today’s world. Mythological stories are filled with symbols, and I believe some of those symbols still live on in our lives today. For example, I painted a pile of stones—a gesture often associated with making wishes in Korea—and titled it The Stone of Sisyphus.
I want to be an artist who paints everyday, boring life—because it’s the very essence of our society. And I want my work to make people pause, question, and even feel confused by the everyday actions, scenes, and objects they take for granted. Because I believe that questioning and doubt are the first steps to perceiving life as it truly is.
