S.H. Kim
Brooklyn, NY
Summer 2026 * Art
Artist Statement
S.H. Kim constructs monumental, large-scale abstract paintings that translate the graphic visual lexicon, kinetic motifs, and spatial velocity of 1980s and 1990s Japanese cel animation into tectonic color fields, structural boundaries, and physical tension. Rather than illustrating direct narrative scenes, Kim isolates and distills fleeting cinematic moments—such as explosive shockwaves, atmospheric plumes, and directional vectors—recasting ephemeral animation cels into expansive, enduring painterly architectures. Central to his practice is a rigorous dialogue between mechanical precision and material vulnerability.
Working across large-format canvases, Kim applies saturated, high-pigment oil paint while deliberately leaving unpainted margins between adjacent planes of color. These exposed gaps reveal underlying colored pencil drawings, laying bare the compositional scaffolding, structural calculations, and human trace inherent to the construction of the picture plane. Through this interplay, synthetic mass-cultural imagery is translated into visceral, tactile surfaces that oscillate between calculated geometry and organic resonance.
The artist in the studio. © S.H. Kim
Works
Night Landscape, 2026, Oil on canvas, 78 x 52 in.
Strike on Target, 2026, Oil on canvas, 78 x 78 in.
Untitled, 2026, Oil on canvas, 52 x 78 in.
Untitled, 2025, Colored pencil and oil on canvas, 78 x 78 in.
Untitled, 2026, Colored pencil and oil on canvas, 78 x 78 in.
What Survives, 2026, Oil on canvas, 78 x 78 in.
Installation Views
Studio installation view of What Survives (2026), Artist’s Studio, Brooklyn, NY
Studio installation view of Untitled (2025), Artist’s Studio, Brooklyn, NY.
Studio installation view of Night Landscape (2026), Artist’s Studio, Brooklyn, NY
The artist in the studio. © S.H. Kim
About the Artist
S.H. Kim is a Brooklyn-based visual artist and painter born in Seoul, South Korea. He earned a BFA in Painting and a BA in Art History from Hongik University, and received his MFA in Painting and Drawing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC). Kim has exhibited internationally in solo and two-person presentations, including exhibitions at Tiger Gallery (London), Galería Yusto/Giner (Madrid), Studio Concrete (Seoul), and FLXST Contemporary (Chicago). He currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.
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