From August 31 to September 13, 2024, the solo exhibition of Kim Min-jung (Cha Ki-yul, an advisor) of Incheon National University's general graduate school of art was successfully held at the 'Art Plug Training' run by the Training Culture Foundation.

This exhibition was selected as the "2024 Training Arts Support Project" supported by Yeonsu-gu and the Yeonsu Cultural Foundation, and the interview was conducted to share the work and experience of Kim Min-jung with members of Incheon National University.

1. Please briefly explain the theme of the exhibition.

The title of the exhibition is "One, Breathing." It explores the energy of living things surrounding ecology, and focuses on relationships, balance, and circulation. 

2. Is there any feedback you received from the audience through the exhibition that impressed you?

I've heard a lot of reviews. Someone magnified the water vapor in the fog and said it looked like they were seeing water particles reflected in the bright sunlight, and someone said they felt life-related, burning and rising. 

3. Please describe the techniques or materials used in each piece.

I mainly use oil painting, but I think oil painting is a very suitable material for expressing the depth and texture I want. In particular, I think the medium of painting should have its natural beauty and completeness. No matter how deep and meaningful the message I want to convey through my work, I don't think I can reach the audience unless it is attractive in itself. That's why I try to find changes and variations in the screen, and I try to make the rhythm and flow continue to stretch and bloom. I tend to put a lot of effort into creating colors, too. Especially when expressing dark areas, instead of using black paint directly, each painting creates a different atmosphere of darkness by mixing various colors and coloring them. I believe that through this, the depth and subtle differences of the work can be expressed. In my work, darkness is not just a color, but an important element that captures various emotions and atmospheres, so making it look different for each work is one of the important characteristics of my work.

4. Is there any artist or artistic flow that influenced your work? 

I get my inspiration from the environment that surrounds me, rather than from a specific writer or art trend. My childhood memory had a particularly important influence. The pond in front of my house and its surroundings served as the foundation for my work. It's changed a lot, but at that time, big trees were wrapped around vines, and the roads were not asphalt, but mixed with rubble. The feelings I felt in this environment shaped my world of work.

I was greatly influenced by the curiosity and fun I felt while sitting by the pond watching frog eggs closely, playing with earthworms, and watching ants move in a line. The changes that can be found in nature, the unpredictable disorder, and the various elements contained in it are reflected in my work. Irregularities and unpredictable changes from these mixed nature appearances. I think the movement and disorder of soil, water, and the various life forms in them appear as a flow in my painting, and they come together to become an important part of the screen.

Eventually, my work begins with the memories and experiences of these surroundings, as well as the intricacies and vibrancy of nature that I discovered in them. This process is not just a description of the external landscape, but a process of visually unraveling the sensory experiences of nature and the environment.

5. Do you have any plans after this exhibition? I wonder if the next project or exhibition is scheduled.

Starting with this "One, Breathing", I think I'm at the point of organizing the overall context of the work. I need to be a little more solid, and I think I need to clearly develop the specificity of what I want to do. 

There are now two exhibitions in December, with a solo exhibition at Space Barren Land in Yeonsu-dong from the 5th to the 11th, and a three-person exhibition at Gallery Fire and So, Namdong Sorae Art Hall from the 14th to the 30th. 

This exhibition, "One, Breathing," was an important opportunity for Kim Min-jung to show her own unique work world. The exhibition, which explores the energy of various living things surrounding ecology and deals with the themes of relationships, balance, and circulation, ended successfully with the attention of many audiences. In particular, the delicate colors and rhythms expressed by Kim Min-jung through oil paintings gave the audience a unique sensory experience. Kim continues her work based on her experiences in her surroundings and the disordered beauty she found in nature, and she plans to focus on exploring these themes in the future. I am looking forward to how Kim Min-jung's original work will develop.