On-Campus Professional Art Show

       

Children's Room I, Mixed Media on Canvas (2008), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        Walking into Wonsook Kim's exhibit, Lines of Enchantment, I was astonished at the fairy tale sculptures and paintings. It felt as if I was in a story book, making up the stories for each figure and painting as I walked by. Since her work was listed in a book, as opposed to having a label nearby, I went through without looking at the titles. This allowed me to believe what I wanted with each piece. After walking through the whole show, I finally went back to see the titles and information about the artist. While reading her brief biography I had learned that she was in fact an Alumni from the Illinois State School of Art. I was astonished by this because of how successful she has become. Moving from Korea to Illinois, just to do what she loved, creating artwork, shows that you can accomplish anything if you put forth the effort and mindset. 

Golden Pairs, Oil on Wood (2013), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        There is not much to say about her work that I did not like.  While she may be coming up with scenes or narratives from her life, it shows that she paid careful attention to the detail and story behind her work. Alone the pieces might not have been as successful as they are as a whole, which is what is really great about this exhibit. I believe to get the full understanding of her work, you have to see the play between her paintings and sculptures. Each have their own uniqueness to them and each brings a different life to the atmosphere in the room. 

Seated Woman with Hair Up, Acrylic on Canvas (2012), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        The artwork has such a comforting and calming aspect to it that draws the viewers in. Each figure that had been sculpted out of bronze, reminded me of a motherly figure in one way or another. Whether it was because of the actions they were performing, or the positions of their bodies, I felt as if I had experienced them in my life. There was also a mystery to each figure, probably because of the lack of information in the faces. This allows the audience to image them as whoever they want to imagine, with whatever expression fits their needs. 

A Girl with a Hairdo, Bronze (2011), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        The use of lighting when displaying some of these sculptures really added to the pieces whether she meant for it to happen or not. They look as if they were directly painted on the wall with natural shadows behind them. I believe this helped her sculpture pieces in many ways, and it helped pull these pieces together with some of her paintings and the shadows that were present in them as well. 

Black Mirror I, Ink and Charcoal on Paper (1974), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

Unseen Miracle, Bronze (2014), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        One of my favorite pieces out of the whole show was a bronze sculpture titled, Ascending/Descending. It was a sculpture of a woman descending a staircase, while also ascending it simultaneously. This figure actually had two faces unlike any of her other work. It made me wonder why she made this piece, and only this piece, with two faces. Was she being pulled between a decision in life, or did she have two personalities or traits she was trying to convey. I studied this piece the longest out of the whole show trying to come up with an idea on why she did what she did, and I enjoyed it a lot. This piece really draws in the audience and makes them wonder, especially since the title doesn't really give any information besides the obvious scene. It was also one of those pieces where you glance at it without noticing anything at first, then further come to see every detail. 

Ascending/Descending, Bronze (2011), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

Ascending/Descending, Bronze (2011), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries 

Ascending/Descending, Bronze (2011), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        Wonsook Kim's pieces from the time she was in art school until now all come together for this exhibit. It said she used many new techniques, and visited some old ones, to comprise the work for this show. While there is a similarity in all the pieces, you can see the growth and aging with her work which I really love. This exhibit was honestly one of my favorites because there was not a single piece that I did not enjoy looking at. I highly recommend seeing this show at University Galleries because it could be a once in a lifetime chance to view this amazing work by an amazing artist who started her career in Normal, Illinois. 

Feather Feather, Ink and Charcoal on Paper (1975), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries