Soo Kim is a New York based artist originally from Seoul. Her work gives a feeling of childlike wonder at the same time as a deep sense of melancholy and an occasional dash of dark humor. She has exhibited her work in New York as well as Tokyo and Berlin.
Soo does us the great honor of answering a few questions for BUST:
What is your favorite place in NYC for finding inspiration?
Greenwich village. I think the lines of townhouses are so beautiful especially in Spring with Cherry Blossoms blossomed. As well as all the museums (MoMa, Folk Art Museum..)
What is your ideal breakfast?
COFFEE. Soy milk, toast, pine apple flavored cottage cheese and a banana.
What are your favorite materials to work with?
Water color, and pen. I like to use delicate lines. I learned how to use water color when I was in elementary school, and it’s been my key element to use ever since then.
I experiment with oil paintings and printmaking (etching mono-printing) as well.
 What person influences your work the most?
When I see a person who has an original personality, originally charming, sweet, geeky or weird . . . it’s very refreshing, and inspiring.
If your art was music/food, what would it sound/taste like?
Bittersweet.
Which artists/musicians/writers influence your work?
I am inspired by fiction that explore different characters of people, and thoughts.
I like Paul Auster’s books because there’s often a common theme of being on a journey that underlines his stories. It’s something that I’m fascinated by in general I feel like my life is on a journey in a way. I’m originally from Seoul, Korea, but I’ve moved around a lot growing up.
I spent a year living in Missouri when I was in Junior High School, because of my father’s job. While I was living there, we had many road trips all over the country, then I went back to Korea. I’ve been living in NY for about a decade for now, but always been tempted to an idea of relocating to a new city, than I realize that l like living in NY more than I have been aware of.
Another favorite author is Japanese writer Nasume Soseki. His fiction is so clean, dry and delicate. I think he depicts the most delicate human feelings of being quiet, subtle, and poetic in a written form. For me, visually depicting those emotions would be very challenging.
For visual arts, I like Folk Art, and expressive German paintings.
What themes repeatedly haunt your work?
Fairy Tales, Romantic Nightmare, Journey, relationships.
What would you be if you weren’t an artist?
I’ve been drawing all my life since I was a child. I would think that of being an ambassador, because I’d like to visit other countries, and experience different cultures.
I think I would be good at introducing, and representing my original culture in positive ways as well.
What roles do escapism and reality play in your work?
My work is always fictional. It’s about something that I daydream of, or a story that I came up with. I like to create my own stories, themes. They often reflect different aspects of interactions between people.
I guess it’s a philosophical problem solving process as well.
If you could only draw one thing thing for the rest of your life, what would it be? The girl who is often the main character of my work, I think she’s experiencing and growing internally.
if you were a bird, what kind would you be?
Woodstock
Thank you so Ms Soo! give her website a look
–Emma Onstott
