Junyoung Kang

Kang Junyoung unfolds his autobiographical story through various media such as painting, sculpture, drawing, and video, employing literary storytelling. The themes of his work can be broadly categorized into "family, love, flowers, and home." These themes stem from his experiences of studying abroad in Australia, the United States, and Korea since childhood, as well as the extraordinary love of his family, imprinting a sense of "romantic love" that he expresses with lyrical yet sophisticated sensibility. Utilizing diverse media such as ceramics, painting, and drawing, the artist embodies his thoughts and profound emotions with various colors and free brushstrokes. Particularly, he reinterprets traditional moon jars by incorporating his own drawings, transforming ceramics from a utilitarian concept to a notion of "seeing." Furthermore, the artist embeds straightforward messages of hope within his works, such as "Pray for you," "You are more beautiful than you think," and "I adore you," aiming to communicate deeply with universal human emotions. Junyoung graduated from the Department of Ceramics and Glass at Hongik University and obtained a master's degree from its Graduate School. Starting from Gallery Samji in 2006, he has held solo exhibitions at venues such as Gallery Hyundai (2011), Gimhae Clayarch Museum (2013), Gallery Huue Singapore (2015), CR Collective (2017), Atelier Arki (2021), and Gallery 2gil2gu (2023). He has also participated in numerous group exhibitions at institutions such as Arko Art Center (2010), Taiwan Ceramics Museum (2011), Gyeonggi International Ceramic Biennale Yeouju Special Exhibition (2015), Soda Museum (2019), Total Museum (2020), and Seongnam Arts Center Cube Museum (2021). He was awarded the Clay Olympics Grand Prize in 2006, and his works are housed in collections including the Budafok Museum in Monaco, Hanyang Lim Ceramic Museum, and Paradise Hotel.