Statements
Harmonize the Formal Language of Painting with Emotional Depth
2022
Im Sunny
Since 2015, my painting practice has been grounded in a sustained inquiry into the fundamentals of the medium. Beginning with a formal investigation, I have explored the core components of painting—flatness, line, color, brushstroke, point of view, and layered surfaces—placing these elements at the center of my work.
From 2017 onward, the focus of this formal exploration gradually expanded to include narrative and subject matter, allowing me to develop a more distinct artistic language.
Since 2022, I have been working toward a deeper integration of form and content. My recent works aim not only to refine the structure of painting but also to examine the emotional undercurrents that shape human experience. In this sense, the paintings extend beyond formal research and become a means to articulate inner states—particularly those related to anxiety and vulnerability.
Brâncuși_Sleeping Muse II, 2022, Oil on canvas, 162 x 112 cm ©Artist
To address these complex emotions, I intentionally choose unstable and fluid motifs. Drawing upon the imagery and compositional logic of vanitas still-life painting, my work engages with themes of ephemerality, emptiness, and mortality. For instance, in Brancusi_Sleeping Muse II, the gentle drift of clouds becomes a metaphor for inner unrest, while Magritte_The Discovery of Fire II draws from Magritte’s motif of fire to express the desire to transform the impossible into possibility.
Magritte_The Discovery of Fire II, 2022, Oil on canvas, 162 x 112 cm ©Artist
Ultimately, my practice seeks to harmonize the formal language of painting with emotional depth, inviting viewers into a space of contemplation and resonance.
Writings
Statements
Still life “The Unbearable Lightness of Being”The ‘Still life_The Unbearable Lightness of Being’ is inspired by Milan Kundera’s novel 『The Unbearable Lightness of Being』. The core concept of the series visualizes the tension and duality within human existence through the lens of “kitsch,” one of the novel’s
2025
Texts
The Planarity Journey in Artist Im Sunny’s Colorful PaintingsLim Sunhee’s (b. 1975) colorful artworks may look like regular paintings that depict objects, scenery, or some sort of image. Lined Blue Ring Angelfish II (2019) resembles an aquarium filled with brilliantly colored fish, while Magritte_The Discovery of Fire (2022) seems to depict a dream in which a floating brass instrument is on fire somewhere on land where the sun sets.
2022.09.12
Statements
Harmonize the Formal Language of Painting with Emotional DepthSince 2015, my painting practice has been grounded in a sustained inquiry into the fundamentals of the medium. Beginning with a formal investigation, I have explored the core components of painting—flatness, line, color, brushstroke, point of view, and layered surfaces—placing these elements at the center of my work.
2022
Texts
Artist Im Sunny Explores the Essence of Painting: “I reveal the hidden sides of seemingly meaningless objects through my own formative elements.”Im Sunny has long been active in the field of video art. What led her, after so many years, to return to painting—traditional painting—just two years ago? We met the artist at ‘Cafe M Gallery’ in Daechi-dong, where her recent works are on view, to hear her thoughts on the value of fine painting.
2017.08.01
Criticisms
On "Flatness" in Im Sunny’s Painting:《The Flat》ExhibitionIn recent painting, contemporary relevance is achieved less through the invention of new forms or subjects than through a renewed attentiveness to how painting is perceived, interpreted, and framed. Increasingly, artists engage in a meta-critical reflection on the content and structure of traditional painting, revealing new perspectives embedded within its inherited conventions.
2015