Material: Natural powdered pigments (“bunchae”), traditional mineral pigments (“seokchae”), Korean soot ink (“meok”)
Title: "The Cartography of Becoming: Where Colors Learn Their Names"
Within the labyrinthine geography of this canvas, a profound metamorphosis unfolds—one that speaks to the eternal human struggle between confinement and transcendence, between the singular and the universal. Here, in this dense constellation of forms and colors, butterflies emerge as reluctant mediators, born from the very conflicts they seek to resolve.
Each irregular shape represents more than mere aesthetic choice; they are the embodied voices of the marginalized, the imperfect, the deliberately overlooked. Trapped within their individual chromatic territories, these forms pulse with an internal yearning—a desire to transcend the boundaries that define and confine them. At their centers, golden dots serve as vital organs, heartbeats of authenticity that affirm each being's inherent worth regardless of size, brightness, or conventional beauty.
The butterflies that emerge from this chromatic chaos are not mere symbols of transformation, but active agents of reconciliation. Some remain imprisoned within their originating forms, their wings beating against invisible walls, their mediation efforts constrained by the very systems they inhabit. These represent our daily struggles—the countless small attempts at understanding, at bridge-building, that often go unnoticed and seemingly accomplish little.
Yet others achieve something more profound. They transcend their original territories, crossing the black ink boundaries that separate one reality from another. These transcendent mediators carry within them the possibility of true harmony—not the superficial peace of suppression, but the dynamic equilibrium of genuine coexistence. They plant seeds of possibility in foreign territories, becoming ambassadors of a vision where difference is not merely tolerated but celebrated as essential.
The flowers that bloom throughout this landscape are the fruits of these efforts—small victories that might appear insignificant against the canvas's overwhelming complexity, yet represent profound shifts in the ecosystem of being. Each bloom is a testament to persistence, a proof that even the most constrained environments can nurture transformation.
My choice to work with oriental pigments on canvas creates a deliberate cultural displacement, a visual metaphor for the cross-pollination that occurs when different worlds meet. The traditional materials speak to ancestral wisdom about harmony and balance, while their application in contemporary context suggests new possibilities for ancient truths.
This work emerged from my ongoing "Each and Every Colors" (각양각색) series—a body of over 30 works that explores the philosophy of radical inclusivity. But this particular piece represents a crystallization of that philosophy into a specific moment of becoming. It asks: What happens when the marginalized refuse to remain invisible? What occurs when the small and overlooked claim their space not through force, but through the quiet persistence of authentic being?
The deliberately muted visual impact reflects our contemporary moment—in an age that demands spectacular statements and immediate gratification, perhaps the most radical act is the insistence on gentle, persistent presence. This work requires slow looking, patient observation, the kind of attention that our hyperconnected world actively discourages.
The title "The Cartography of Becoming" suggests that this canvas functions as a map—not of what is, but of what is perpetually becoming. It charts the territories where transformation is not just possible but inevitable, where the act of respectful observation itself becomes a form of participation in the ongoing creation of more inclusive realities.
In viewing this work, one becomes complicit in its philosophy. The eye that seeks to distinguish forms, to separate colors, to categorize and organize, gradually learns to appreciate the beauty of ambiguity, the strength found in vulnerability, the power that resides in the spaces between definitions. The butterflies ask us to become mediators ourselves—to carry their message beyond the confines of the canvas and into the complex territories of our daily existence.
