Bumin Kim: Nocturne

bumin kim: nocturne

September 9 - October 14, 2023

Press Release

Ro2 Art is proud to present Nocturne, an exhibition of new work by Dallas-based artist Bumin Kim. The exhibition will open September 9 and remain on view through October 14, 2023, at Ro2 Art located at 2606 Bataan St., Dallas, TX, with an opening reception to be held September 9 from 7-10pm.

In Nocturne, Bumin Kim’s newest series of thread paintings and sculptures, Kim continues her explorations of the potential of thread by drawing inspiration from the narrative and abstract qualities of classical music. Gradients of luminous color created by meticulously built up collections of thread evoke images of the last light of dusk and early morning dawn, eliciting emotional responses to the quiet, dream-like quality of a nocturnal setting. The title of the exhibition, Nocturne, references a type of musical composition suggestive of nighttime, pointing to both the visual qualities of Kim’s work as well as their musicality. Kim’s exquisite color relationships seem to sparkle and shimmer like the light of twilight while also evoking a sense of sound and silence akin to the melodiousness of classical music. Throughout the works presented in Nocturne, Bumin Kim adapts line and color to create cascading gradients evocative of nocturnal moments, memories, emotions.

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artist Statement

The exhibition Nocturne presents a series of artworks that focus on the transformative power of materiality and the repurposing of thread in a way that highlights the energy, delicacy, and grace of painting. The context of thread is used symbolically to convey deeper meanings and emotions in my works. The play of light and darkness, along with the emotions and memories they evoke are my central explorations. As the sun sets and darkness envelops the sky and the presence of lights becomes more pronounced, I had an approach that revolves around the concept of gathering lights. The lights in the nocturnal setting serve as metaphors that inspire and guide me. They reawaken memories of bygone verses, melodies, and narratives, which in turn evoke cascades of emotions, and these emotions and inspirations are translated into subtle hues, lines, and solid forms.

About the Artist

Bumin Kim is originally from South Korea and received her MFA in Drawing and Painting in 2015 from the University of North Texas, Denton, Texas. In 2017 she was awarded at the 30th annual international competition and exhibition, Materials: Hard+Soft. Her work has been shown by various institutions, including: Pulse Art Fair in Miami, FL; Dallas Art Fair in Dallas, TX; Art Aspen in Aspen, CO; and Texas Contemporary Art Fair in Houston, TX. Furthermore, Kim’s work has been featured in publications, such as: New American Paintings, Fresh Paint Magazine, and Glasstire, and can be found in public and private collections throughout the United States, South Korea, and Europe. Bumin Kim completed an artist residency at Facebook’s headquarters in Austin, Texas in 2020, and her work was selected to be displayed at the Schneider Museum of Art in Ashland, Oregon in 2022.

Bumin Kim acknowledges the transformative power of materiality at play, and has repurposed the context of thread and string to emphasize the energy, delicacy, and grace of painting and drawing. Both the weight of the line as thin and singular, and the collection of lines en masse, as solid form, are tools which Kim uses to build complex forms that vibrate just above the surface. Kim’s intricate manipulation of materials highlights her ability to challenge the traditional model of what a painting should be. Brushstrokes become thread and string, and the flat surface is liberated to breathe into three-dimensional space. This echoes the charged expanse between the earth and skies in North Texas, where subtle hues and solid forms dissolve into immaterial prisms of flowing color.