Se Young Yim is a New York-based painter and sculptor. She was born and raised in Seoul, South Korea, and studied Fashion there. Then, she moved to the USA and received an MFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York.
We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far, Se Young. Can you tell us a little about yourself?
I’ve had a lot of changes in my journey so far. I was born and raised in Seoul, South Korea. I loved to draw and read books from a young age. I read a lot of fiction and loved comic books and fashion because they can tell stories visually, so I was naturally interested in those things. Then, I entered college with a Japanese literature and Japanese language major. Because I liked Japanese mystery novels, but after one year, I transferred to a fashion major because I became more interested in storytelling visually. Then, I was lucky enough to get an internship in New York through my school, and during that time, I went to many art exhibitions in New York, including the MoMa, the New Museum, and the Whitney Museum, and I was blown away. I didn’t know much about contemporary art, it was so new, fun, and exciting – I fell in love with it instantly. For me, it was the most compelling medium to hear people’s stories without any filters and in their own voice. I was a very self-censored person, so I knew I needed to study this freedom, and I decided I had to return to New York to study art. Therefore, I got my MFA in Fine arts from the School of Visual Arts and am now based in New York as a sculptor and painter.
What is your art about? Is there a message that you want to deliver?
My artistic practice explores the vulnerable physicality of the body; I interpret this as subtle emotions between people and places. Through my sculptures and paintings, I try to capture and convey intimate moments with eerie feelings. I’ve always been curious about love and humans; I don’t think you can talk about any human trait without mentioning love. People can confess their most vulnerable in front of love. It’s fragile, unstable, and somehow uncomfortable, but it’s beautiful that humans continue to do it nonetheless. I want people to look at my paintings and think about the love that embraces imperfect fear. I hope they can evoke loneliness, weirdness, some emotions, and memories for audiences.
What is the most exciting thing you’ve done or accomplished so far?
So far, all the projects I’ve done are memorable, but ‘I hide my tulips within my neck’ stands out the most. It was made while I was at GlogauAIR, an artist residency in Berlin. It was a new experience to be selected as an international artist and live in a residency in another country. The different environments have expanded my ability. For example, I used many colors I hadn’t used before, and I think the colors of the buildings in Berlin inspired me. Compared to New York, the buildings in Berlin are desaturated and have more pale colors mixed with grays and greens. I think I was influenced by those tones while staying there. Also, the work was created in consideration of the showcase in the residency building. The paintings and frames were made to fit the size of the showcase. The frame was made of cement, and I could find a connection between my previous sculptural work and my two-dimensional work. I remember it as a starting point for my later experiments between material and scene, such as mixing cement in my paintings.
What does “community” mean to you? How do you see yourself in a community?
Community means a lot to me. Someone says people need three elements to be happy: autonomy, connection to others, and achievement. If you ask me to choose the most important of the three, I would choose connection, it means community. I’m interested in people, so how I interact with others is essential. Growing up in South Korea, I was used to being told I was different. My hairstyle, music taste, etc., were different from what was popular among my peers, so I was often called weird, and I started to be very sensitive to how people judged me. Sometimes, it felt overwhelming to care about it to stay connected to others. Moving to the U.S. and being in a community as a foreigner was also challenging at first, but it actually freed me from the judgment of random people. As I put my thoughts out there through my work, the people who listen to me became my community – some read my blog, and others look at my artwork. As I’ve started to share my work actively, I feel like I’m learning how to connect with people easily, and in that sense, I’m always grateful that art can illuminate people’s voices and give them a chance to be heard.
What are you working on right now?
I’m currently in the artist residency in Brooklyn, NY, and I’ve been trying to figure out how to develop my paintings. I’ve only been painting seriously for about a year, so I’d like to develop this practice further. As I mentioned before, I’d like to experiment more between sculpture and painting and explore more about materials. There is much more to explore with the medium of painting; for now, I want to allow myself to experience a lot of time to do that.
Is there any advice that you would like to share with others?
If I had a chance to give any advice myself from a few years ago, I would say trust my inner voice more. Even if I go back, there’s a path where there’s a purpose, and I wish I’d trusted myself more because I’m the one who knows me best, and that most of the things I worry about don’t happen! I hope this advice will be helpful to others. Thank you!
text & photo courtesy of Se Young Yim
- Instagram: @surrealmantis
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