The Pulse of Ink

The exhibition "The Pulse of Ink, Paper, and Fire" at Almine Rech, Brussels, features works by Korean artist Minjung Kim. Kim's practice centers on hanji, traditional Korean mulberry paper, which she manipulates through cutting, burning, folding, and layering. The resulting textures evoke the imprints of time and process, balancing fragility with resilience. Her work unfolds cyclically, with each piece emerging intuitively from the act of creation, fostering a practice of repetition and renewal.

Kim, who trained in traditional Korean painting and later studied in Milan, developed a visual language at the intersection of Eastern sensibility and Western abstraction. Her creations are described as "the act of leaving traces of the time I have lived," visualizing the process of life itself. The series "Phasing" is noted for merging calligraphic gestures with the tactile nature of hanji, exploring tensions between opposing forces like solidity and delicacy, control and release, permanence and change.