A Spiffing Conversation with Henn Kim
Photo Credit: Core. A Creative
Henn Kim is an Illustrator from South Korea known for dramatic and poetic uses of the color black. She creates a distorted fantasy of sorts that has made her one of the most popular illustrators on the platform Instagram and a household name in South Korea and internationally. She has designed the cover art for various indie bands in Seoul and is the author of the art book Starry Night, Blurry Dreams. For the first time ever, she created a series of signed silkscreens. This was the first time she had worked with an art gallery in Europe when she collaborated with the Gunten Gallery. I had the pleasure and honor of asking Henn about her favorite things about creating, her use of strokes, and what made her decide to create art.
UZOMAH: How do you keep creating new and innovative content for your followers?
HENN: My motive in creating is not “I need to create something new and innovative.” Rather, I think – and would like to think – that my followers relate to my feelings and the world that I’ve created through art. They’re able to empathize, hold space, and occupy this world with me. That is also why I push myself to be as honest as possible with my feelings and my art. So rather than “new and innovative content,” I would say “honest and raw.”
U: How has social media allowed you to express your creative statement and interact with your audience?
H: Social media has definitely been instrumental in spreading my story far and wide at a rapid pace. It’s allowed me to share my work, which is a personal diary to me, with others and perhaps give them some reprieve in knowing that they are not alone. To provide some comfort and community to others around the world by letting them know: “I am not the only one who feels exhausted after a long day.”
You’re My Favorite Color
U: What made you decide to create art?
H: It was a very natural decision. I’ve been learning how to draw ever since I was a child, but it was only in my late teens that the current style you know as “Henn Kim” came to be. The emotions and stories that originated from my initial two years of depression and aphasia never completely went away, and I had to continue drawing them away. I thought the only way for me to live was to transmute these feelings into art.
U: Can you describe your use of shadowing?
H: In my work, the shadows are actually a representation of the self. In my drawings, the shadows are a direct personification of my inner feelings, especially the darker emotions. Or the shadows could be an altogether different side of myself that even I’m unaware of. After all, the shadows are no one else’s but mine.
Sink or Swim
U: Your drawings represent a dark fantasy that reveals the beauty of its arrangement in each drawing. Are there any other themes you would like to address, and why did you select this theme?
H: My worldview can be unrealistic, funny, or even paradoxical when expressed in black. But there are times when I want to manifest world peace and beauty in humanity within myself. I’m not very interested in exploring themes outside of personal emotions. The color black is actually so incredibly expressive and not moored to negative expressions. Love, human relationships, and self-exploration can be expressed.
Washing Bad Memories
U: Your use of a few strokes is very dynamic and profound. Why do you choose this technique to make such an impact with your drawings?
H: I started creating work with a single black pen along the lines of writing in a diary. I came to realize that this method was the most me. And it’s continued to work, and flower and establish itself into the style of “Henn Kim”. I also personally like it because it’s simple, dry, and connotative.
Contact
U: If you were not an illustrator, what would you be doing?
H: I would definitely still be working a job that would involve creativity. Doing the same thing day in and day out or having to learn from someone else would never suit me. I would’ve found a job that would allow me to express myself, even if it wasn’t through illustrations.
What a Wonderful World
U: How do you know when you have finished a piece of art?
H: I’ll start with a sketch of an idea and, during the process, have a “Eureka!” moment where I feel that I am finished, to a certain extent. It’s more of an instinct than a method.
U: What is your favorite thing about creating art?
H: …..That I can convey things to others without having to vocally talk about myself or explain myself. That people empathize with my work. That I am able to comfort others like me.
To find more information about Henn’s artwork, please visit her site. Also, follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
