Statement

Bokyung Kim

Bokyung Kim

For my work, I use mainly white porcelain as the material and the electric wheel as the most important tool.

I use the finest white porcelain which has the highest whiteness. To express the whiteness, I fire the porcelain at the highest temperature that can be withstood. To deal with such sensitive porcelain, a very sophisticated and keen observation and attention is required.

I like using an electric wheel most. I started my work by practicing to control the sensitive porcelain with the wheel. My porcelain and turning process does not allow for any tiny mistake until the firing and polishing is finished so that I needed a tremendous amount of practice to make a high quality object. In my early work, I made the simplest objects repeatedly strictly for practice.

The main characteristic of my work is the simplest form with added geometric decoration which never interferes with the original form. It is the result of my practice journey towards making more elaborate objects.

I make the form using an electric wheel and then wait until it hardens. The form made by the wheel transforms when it is dehydrated because it is made by a circular motion. To minimise this,  requires very detailed hand work. In the process of drying of objects, special care is needed to prevent deformation caused by the difference in humidity between the top and bottom and at the same time, to catch the perfect timing to curb. I curb the objects that have the lowest humidity for the fineness. In the case of the objects with lines, I make small steps by curbing a object and drawing several lines. No mistakes are allowed because the whole process is done on the spinning wheel. I always use the finest knives and brushes to curb the hard porcelain and apply slip with stein on it. So, I continually search for better knives and brushes to make my work perfect.

My work represents "a quiet simplicity" outwardly, but it demands enormous practice to improve the inner technical degree of perfection. The simple white form with geometric lines on the surface is the ultimate description of my work. Historically, ceramic art has a high respect for porcelain that values the most impromptu, accidental events and significance. I think my work could provide a new innovation in the historical context.