Shatto Gallery is proud to present Temporal Being: Nature vs Human,  a solo exhibition of ceramics sculptures by YC Kim. 

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Organized into three thematic sections, Temporal Being: Nature vs Human presents recent works by YC Kim that exemplifies her enduring experimentation with form and material, as well as her sustained investigation into the dynamic tension within art’s relationship to nature and transience. 

 

Ranging from intricate biomorphic structures that evoke somatic forms through their wrinkled folds and textures surfaces to seemingly abstract ceramic pieces reminiscent of erupting volcanos, ice canyons, or salt flats, the works grouped under the theme of “Nature” draw inspiration from the artist’ lifelong communion with the natural world. Kim’s works are not representational. Rather than producing simulacra in clay, she creates interpretive forms that distill and embody the harmony and equilibrium found in nature. Kim further asserts her sculptures’ status as art objects through various means, including constraining their physical forms within wooden frames or employing deliberately artificial underglaze colors. This intentional gesture underscores the fragility of ceramics and the transience of art in contrast to the enduring beauty of geologic formations that endure across eons or that of organic life that continually renews itself.

 

In the second group of works (“Studio Sketches”), Kim creates humorously self-referential works that recontextualize the artist’s tools as art objects. By sculpting ceramic models of implements found in her studio, such as lightbulbs, wrenches, and tubes of paint, she transforms overlooked utilitarian items into intricate works of whimsy and wit. 

 

The final group of works (“Figurative Experiment”) showcases Kim’s ongoing exploration of form and material. Working across ceramics, glass, cast paper, and wood, and utilizing processes such as glass slumping and bronze casting, she expands the expressive possibilities of the plastic arts.

 

Taken as a whole, Temporal Being: Nature vs. Human celebrates sculpture’s capacity to transform materials and forms, while also confronting the chastening reality that all human creations are ephemeral besides the sublime forces of the natural world. Art gives us the power to shape and imagine, but the works we leave behind are ultimately temporal. 

 

YC (YoonChung) Kim is a ceramic sculptor who works and resides in San Diego, California. She was born and raised in Korea, and received her BFA and MFA from Seoul National University. And as a Regent Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley, she studied with Peter Voulkos, a revolutionary figure in American ceramics and sculpture. YC Kim served as a Professor of Art at San Diego City College for 26 years before retiring in 2016, and currently holds the title of Professor Emeritus. An internationally recognized ceramic artist, she has held 18 solo exhibitions across Korea, Hong Kong, and the United States, and participated in nearly 200 group exhibitions, including at the Smithsonian Museum, Seoul Metropolitan Museum, and Contemporary Craft Museum in New York. Her works are included in the permanent collections of the Pacific Asia Museum, Tennessee State Museum, Seoul Metropolitan Museum, Hoam Art Museum, and Seoul National University Museum.