Jongbum Kim

In my two- and three-dimensional installations, made using handcraft techniques and modern industrial technology, I have created the atmosphere of a sanctuary—my interpretation of utopia. My illustrations draw upon vivid dreams and fragments of memories, placed in the context of my journey through identity, color, and gender and sexuality, culminating in my blossoming from fantasy into the essential reality of who I am. The discomfort that I experience in a society that often limits its inhabitants to binary categories is exploded through my hand-drawn illustrations, in which I depict the interactions of fantasy characters and multicultural communities free of the boundaries of gender, caste, creed. The illustrations reflect a deep connection with nature and an ethos of loving oneself, one's life, and others. My work is designed both to heal and to express my spiritual worldview, free of rules, discrimination, and other baggage, created according to my own rules and my decisions on how to be in the world.