Passionate struggle Print

Yim Choon Lee’s painting “Black Hole” elicits visions of movement, eruptive, confusing, and dizzying. These feelings of movement gravitate the viewer into a wondrous cosmos of twisting layers and colors, drawing feelings of awe and questions of how its creation is possible. Yim has invented a new technique incorporating sculpture and painting called “Tearing Art”. This technique offers a three-dimensional experience, creating a desire to reach out and touch the various textures within. Born in Goseong, Korea in 1965, Yim inherited three-generations of Korean traditional bamboo and paper art. At age 5, he began to learn these skills from his father. Together, they traveled throughout the mountains in Korea to collect the bamboo for his father’s bamboo art. The bamboo art has a major impact on Yim’s paintings. When Yim was 9 years old, he went to a bamboo mountainside with his father. Waiting through a sudden rainstorm, Yim watched the swaying of the bamboo leaves in the wind. With the background of the mountains, Yim saw a wave of colors that rocked through the entire mountainside. This illusion was the most beautiful scenery he had ever seen. He wanted to transform this phenomenon to a canvas. Ever since, Yim has experimented with various materials and techniques to create his three-dimensional paintings on canvas. In the development of his art work, Yim started with Korean traditional paper and bamboo art, then experimented in paintings with soil and sand, and further used Korean traditional paper with light. Later he applied western oil to Korean traditional paper which created a unique style and texture. From there, he expanded his art horizon to include sculpture, installation art, and performance art. Yim has invented tearing art. Since 2010, Yim has experimented with a totally new technique: tearing the canvas. After removing the canvas, Yim places Korean traditional paper on top of the frame and paints in layers. He then paints both side of the canvas and replaces it upon the frame. Next, he cuts or tears the surface of the canvas and twists or folds it to reveal the back side’s paint. With this method, the colors of the three surfaces blend dynamically and create a unique visual effect. The three surfaces of painting represent the past (traditional paper surface), present (back of canvas linen), and future (front of canvas linen).