[Impact Interview with Hwa-Soon Lee] Young-Churl Shim’s cry, “I, WOMAN” > Media

• 목록

[News Reporter Hwa-Soon Lee] Professor Young-Churl Shim (University of Suwon), president of the Korea Women's Sculptors Association, the largest association of female sculptors in Korea, is still a 'burning youth' just like the TV program. 24 hours is not enough for her. While taking classes with her students, she must also demonstrate her artistic management know-how to lead the Korean Women's Sculptors Association, which has a 45-year history. She wants to increase corporate exchanges so that younger artists can be active, and cso that she can create an incentive system for young artists.

I met her at the 45^th anniversary special exhibition ‘I, WOMAN’ (May 28~6.27 C Art Museum, 7.5~7.17 Sun Gallery), which was like an orchestra being conducted.

Tears for the hard work of our founding seniors in the early days, 45 years ago

“Please come and see the 45-year history of the Korean Women’s Sculptors Association. I almost cried during the prepration process.” 

I was moved by Professor Young-churl Shim’s heartbreaking words. The opening ceremony is not taking place on a weekend, but a weekday – Monday at 12:00 noon. From the morning of May 28, I ran to Yangpyeong C Art Museum in Gyeonggi-do (Director Kwan-Mo Jeong). Of course, I took a 45-seater bus going there from Gwanghwamun. It was the first meeting with Professor Shim in more than 10 years.

“If you decide to rent a bus, you should invite more people.”

“The date has been set, but since it is taking place on Monday, it must be difficult for many people to come. I thought there was nothing I could do. Also, in order to successfully open the exhibition in two places, I had to contact nearly 100 members and ask them to submit their works, collect all the works to be submitted, and transport them carefully to the exhibition hall, I also had to find out about insurance…”

Hearing her sighs and welcoming greetings over the phone, I made the decision to 'participate in the opening ceremony' on Monday.

Kyung-Ja Cheon's nephew, Se-Ryun Cheon's opening celebration performance

On the morning of the opening day, artists who met on the bus bound for Yangpyeong C Art Museum provide drinks and sandwiches for each other. I arrived at the museum around 11am. Professor Young-churl Shim, who appeared on the scene, as the president, checked the order of the opening ceremony one by one from the performance, and greeted the guests one by one. Everything awaited her hand, such as confirming the exhibition space, arranging companies to help sell her works, and planning donations to help women in need. 

In front of the work, she goes back to being a thorough writer. As she dreamed of becoming a dancer when she was in middle school, seeing her performances with installation works is another pleasure from time to time. On the opening day, her longtime friend and nephew of the late writer Kyung-Ja Cheon, a fun artist Se-Ryun Cheon, started a performance called ‘Wind’ as a congratulatory stage. 

Professor Shim grabbed the opposite end of the long cloth as Chun fluttered a long cloth containing drawings and walked around the stone sculpture “Fruit of the Spirit” (2005) by director Kwan-Mo Jeong. As soon as the chairman entered the exhibition hall, invited guests also entered the exhibition hall one after another, and the opening ceremony began. 

“When I was preparing for the exhibition, it was difficult to sculpt with a female body. My heart ached as I reflected on the lives of teachers Jeong-Sook Kim and Young-Ja Yoon, who used their own money to create a sculptural society with female juniors and hold regular exhibitions,” said Professor Young-Churl Shim. While paying tribute to the high will and will of the seniors, I have strengthened my heart to lead the juniors well by upholding their precious will.” 

In 1971, American art historian Linda Noklin published an article titled “Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?” in the American magazine Art News. The fact that female sculptors in Korea formed an organization that “sympathizes” with and “solidarizes” with women’s difficulties at the same time is a very pioneering event in art history and women’s history. 

Significance of the 45^th anniversary ‘I, WOMAN’ exhibition

First, we asked the significance of this exhibition.

Professor Shim, who was lost in thought for a moment, said, “the me-too movement is active around the world, and in the domestic art world as well. In the midst of a patriarchal painting-centered art culture, female sculptors had to shout ‘Me Too’. They are ‘burdened and lonely’ artists. Men and women are just different in their sex, without any differences in abilities. But the time has come to renew the awareness that ‘I am a woman’ in the art world as well, which is why the subject is also I, WOMAN.”

As she took over as president, this time she had no choice but to think deeply about the history, the present, and the future of the entire Korean Women's Sculpture Society.

Currently, there are about 300 members of the Korean Women's Sculpture Association. For 45 years, she has never missed a regular exhibition, and occasionally holds exhibitions abroad, as well as invited exhibitions at art galleries. 83 artists participated in this exhibition as well. 

The exhibition was divided into the first part, Herstory (her history), an exhibition that examines the 45-year history of the Korean Women's Sculptors Association, and the second part, the exhibition ‘Plateau’, which looks into the future through the works of young female sculptors. Through this exhibition, we wanted to show the traces of Korean female sculptors and convey their historicity and symbolism. In particular, the first part paid tribute to the previous presidents, such as the late writers Jeong-Suk Kim and Young-Ja Yoon, who founded the Korean Women Writers Association, and the second part made a place to transfuse young blood.

The first part of the exhibition includes the 1^st president Jeong-Suk Kim (deceased), founding members Yun-Shin Kim and Young-Jun Yoo, 2^nd president Young-Ja Yoon (deceased), 3^rd president Eun-Yeop Kang, 5^th president Kyung-Sook Ko, 6^th president Hyo-Sook Kim, 7^th president Young-Sook Hwang, 9^th president Jeong-Hee Kim, the 10^th president Jong-Ae Lee, the 11^th  president Eun-Sook Shin, the 13^th president Sook-Eui Jo, and the current president Young-Churl Shim the 14^th president were exhibited. The second part of the exhibition includes Kyung-Min Kim, Ri-Hyun Kim, Yeon Kim, Seon Kim, Soo-Kyung Kim, Young-Ran Kim, Young-Sook Kim, Su-Jeong Na, Jin-Sook Na, Ha-Rim Kim, Seong-Hee Park, Hyeon-Joo Park, Gye-Sil Yang, Jin-Ok Yang, Eun-Kyung Choi, Nu-Ri Oh, Je-Hoon Oh, Ji-Hae Yoon, Eun-Young Lee, Won-Jeong Lee, Jae-Shin Lee, and 70 artists including Jeong-Jin Lee, Jun-Young Lee, Jin-Hee Lee, Hye-Sun Lee, Mi-Sook Jeong, Hye-Kyung Jeong, Mi-Ji Chae, Eunjeong Choi, Heejeong Choi, Jieun Lee, Yangsun Kim, and Chunpyo Jeong participated. president were exhibited. The second part of the exhibition includes Kyung-Min Kim, Ri-Hyun Kim, Yeon Kim, Seon Kim, Soo-Kyung Kim, Young-Ran Kim, Young-Sook Kim, Su-Jeong Na, Jin-Sook Na, Ha-Rim Kim, Seong-Hee Park, Hyeon-Joo Park, Gye-Sil Yang, Jin-Ok Yang, Eun-Kyung Choi, Nu-Ri Oh, Je-Hoon Oh, Ji-Hae Yoon, Eun-Young Lee, Won-Jeong Lee, Jae-Shin Lee, and 70 artists including Jeong-Jin Lee, Jun-Young Lee, Jin-Hee Lee, Hye-Sun Lee, Mi-Sook Jeong, Hye-Kyung Jeong, Mi-Ji Chae, Eun-Jeong Choi, Hee-Jeong Choi, Ji-Eun Lee, Yang-Sun Kim, and Chun-Pyo Jeong participated.

The tape-cutting opening ceremony included Eun-Sook Shin (11^th president), Jong-Ae Lee (10^th president), Byeong-Ho Bae (representative of art and criticism), Jin-Se Song (western painter), Myung-Sook Kim (director of Bium-baum Museum of Art) Young-Jun Yoo (founding member), and Eun-Yeop Kang (3^rd president). Hye-Won Kim (2^nd entry artist), Kwan-Mo Jeong (sculptor, C Art Museum director), Min-Ja Yu (painter, Yang-pyeong Museum of Art), Young-Churl Shim (14^th president), Jong-Hyeon Baek (art world representative), Sook-Ui Jo (13^th speaker) , Hye-Kyung Won (CEO of Sun gallery) and other VIPs attended. 

“As the president, I want to focus on the role of bridging artists and companies. So I want to expand business exchanges and expand support so that artists can be excited to work.”

In order to establish a virtuous cycle structure where other creations can be made with the profits from the sale of works, Professor Shim is about to meet entrepreneurs and allow companies and artists to interact. It also focuses on the donation system that gives companies an opportunity to collect and gives strength to women in need. We are thinking of running a program to revitalize the creative activities of juniors by creating an award system for young artists and an exhibition support system.

‘Matrix Garden-I, WOMAN’ emphasizing ‘vitality’

While conducting a special exhibition for the 45^th anniversary of the Korean Women Sculptors Association, she also submitted his own work. The entry work is ‘Matrix Garden-I, WOMAN’, which she has been working on since 2012.

“My work is a ‘Matrix Garden’ that looks like a hologram. Like the movie ‘The Matrix’, the spheres in the work are connected vertically and horizontally to show the principle of the universe. The universe becomes a womb, a sacred space and a private space, and it is also expressed as a space where many living things communicate.”

The small spheres in the work represent a small universe, and the spheres come together to form a large universe. The small spheres show the matrix structure of virtual, real, and cosmos through the images of you and me, and ours, which are reflected on the ceiling and floor and reproduced infinitely again. In the process, the spheres collide with each other and express the sound of the universe with a strange sound. Professor Shin, who recently worked with round stainless-steel balls and optical fibers as her main materials, enjoys communicating with the audience through multimedia synesthesia art that integrates art, technology, music and light into one. 

Art critic Professor Young-ho Kim (Chung-Ang University) said, “Young-churl Shim’s art is always on the borderline. Her art is located not only at the borders of various genres and media, but also at the point of contact where the inner aspects of consciousness collide with each other.”

Installation artist, media artist and technology artist. For the past 30 years, she has crossed various genres through her constant search and research on media and materials. On the one hand, she has communicated with audiences on topics such as exploration of femininity, healing of pain, religious messages, and historical events.

She studied at Sungshin Women's University Sculpture Department and UCLA Graduate School.

In the early 1980s, early in her career, she presented a series of stone sculptures using combs, a tool for combing hair and symbolizing femininity. In the 1990s after studying in the United States, the 'Electronic Garden' expressed an inner paradise through the fusion of technology and art, and in the 2000s, the 'Monumental Garden' expressed the cyclical structure of nature where yin and yang, creation and extinction are repeated, 'Secret Garden' embodied meditation and healing through the infinity and energy of space, and 'Matrix Garden' emphasized the principle and vitality of the universe since 2012. Since then, she has been creating a garden series.