March, 2023
Kyung-Me (b. 1991 in Georgia, USA) is an artist working with drawings and illustrations. With meticulous methods inspired by both French draftsman Gustave Doré (1832–1883) and Japanese woodcuts, she creates detailed and dreamlike spatialities.
Three works by Kyung-Me were on view at Magasin III during the spring of 2023, as part of the exhibition In the Eye of the Beholder. Curator Sofia Ringstedt got in contact with the artist and asked her about the works, which are also part of our collection.
Sofia Ringstedt: Your works are incredibly rich in detail, and I understand that your artistic process is very time consuming. You have mentioned Gustave Doré as source of inspiration to you, for his meticulousness. You have also mentioned ancient Japanese woodblock prints as a source of inspiration, seen in your motifs and how you approach perspective. What is it that draws you to Japanese woodblock prints?
Kyung-Me: When I was first becoming interested in art, I gravitated towards Japanese woodblock prints. In the interior scenes, I was drawn to the seemingly effortless arrangement of objects that appear both natural and immaculate. I was also mesmerized by the mixture of patterns and textures within one image, which is something I try to employ in my work.
SR: In Ghost 1 and Ghost 4 (2018), seemingly solitary individuals are depicted in narrow rooms. They are facing away, with their backs turned to us. As viewers, we never get to meet their gazes. What can you tell us of this choice?
K-M: For this series, I was not interested in showing a face. At the time, I was thinking of a male subject who was completely immersed in his own private psychodrama. In one drawing, the male subject blocks out his face with a hand. In another, his face is blocked out by the bathroom tile. I wanted to give the subject his privacy, as well as allow the viewer to freely gaze around the room.
SR: In Half Mourning IV (2018) you portrayed a lavishly decorated room, empty of people but full of impressions and details. An elegant garment is laid out on the bed. The black color of the garment, together with the title, brings mourning garments to mind. What does the title mean to you in this work?
K-M: The term ‘Half-Mourning’ comes from the Victorian Era. During this time of plague and subsequent mass death, there were stringent rules for how a woman should behave and dress during a period of mourning. When a woman’s husband died, she was expected to mourn for three to four years. For the first half of mourning, a woman was expected to shroud herself in an oppressive crepe mourning gown. After about two years, at the halfway point of mourning, a woman was permitted to wear more sensual mourning attire as a way to signal potential new suitors. To me, the costume evoked a hollow in-between state between grief and the need to move on.
