Capturing Beauty of Nature

Painter Kim Ban-san expresses 'Sound of Earth'in his uniquely abstract art work

You cannot tell which is a house, a tree, mountain, and sky in paintings done by Kim Ban-san. A good copy of what you see as it is and also a good description of senses of feelings that you don't see. From this point of view, we may not be able to call Kim's art pieces great paintings only by seeing what they are seen. However, when you understand the fact that his paintings don't show what he sees but present his inspiration and feelings that can be found generally around him, you will definitely consider his work as very well done.
In modern Korean art, as the painting of appearance reproduction, lacking reality, that focused on the form has been reevaluated, had dominated the '80s and '90s. Recently there has been an enormous effort to describe various emotions and feelings, and individual interests in society as well as external appearances as a view of art that a lot of painters pursue.
As it may be accepted as a kind of abstractionism, it is also far away from an art historical view or aesthetic
research by a tendency to continue excessive form-focused acts when mentioning something abstract. Art remains permanently as long as human beings exist. It just changes its forms according to the mode of lives, art's transformation, and the development of materials. All the while the tendency of self-sufficiency that neglects the arts'social structural approach or communication problems as art producers, has been also developing similarly. It doesn't mean that social and political contents should be certainly managed. Rather, it means that artists should identity themselves as outsiders in society, should have apparent and clear creative basis for their artistic activities, and should notice that art is a communication.
'Sounds of Earth'said Kim Ban-san, doesn't belong to the sound that you hear with your ears. That's the very sound of inspiration in order to associate with society at the present of being an artist. As it is said that he came in contact with art through painting in 1981,
it is not too much to say that he has moved following sounds for 20 years. He is said to have traveled around the fields and the mountains for sketching and worked mainly with Indian ink stressing on 'locations.'He would have been probably making every effort to rub on ink-stick, and painting views in the raptures of the beauty of Mother Nature. After the middle 1990s, the painter had an important period according to himself, when there was confusion about "Where does the creative impulse come from?"Painter Kim held his latest solo exhibitions at Gallery Dream under the theme of Sound-Earth, preceded by one at Gallery Miz under the same theme of Sound-Earth in 2003. His solo art exhibition took place in 1995 at Baikak Art Gallery under the theme of Ink Painting Exhibition. He held a total of 11 solo exhibitions and two double exhibitions so far in his career.
His art pieces were displayed at numerous group and invitational art exhibitions both at home and abroad, starting from 1989 in the Joongang Grand Fine Art Exhibition at Hoam Art Gallery, an art gallery named after the penname of late founder of Samsung Group Lee Byung-chol, the largest conglomerate in the country. He also displayed his work at the Sorak International Art Biennale held in Sorak, Gangwon Province in 1995. The art events during the 2002 World Cup finals in Seoul, the Sydney, Australia Invitational Exhibition of Contemporary Korean Art 2002 at Gallery Victoria in Sydney. nw

Sound-Earth I, 65.2x53cm, ink,mixed media on fabric, 2005

Sound-Earth V: 65.2x53cm, ink, mixed media on fabric, 2005

Sound-Earth II, 65.2x53cm, ink, mixed media, fabric, 2005