As we eagerly await the arrival of The Gateway Korea, we invite you to hitch us on the journey to our flagship occasion going international. The Gateway will function an audio-visual gallery the place artwork, expertise, and neighborhood unite. Attendees may even be capable to have interaction in hearth chats with visionary creators worldwide, representing each Western and Jap cultures.
As we’re on the highway to Korea, we’ve interviewed a few of the greatest Korean creators within the Web3 area who shall be exhibiting on the occasion, every pioneering their creative journey in distinctive methods.
First, we’ve got DeeKay Kwon, the prodigious 2D animator from South Korea. With over a decade of expertise in animation, DeeKay ventured into the NFT area 2.5 years in the past, pushing the boundaries of conventional artwork and exploring new horizons inside the digital realm.
Subsequent, we’ve got Krista Kim, a Canadian Korean who has spent 13 years residing in Seoul and different components of Asia. Her creative expression delves into meditative portray within the digital age, the place she skillfully merges expertise as a mechanism for wellness, bringing concord and serenity to the ever-evolving digital panorama.
Grant Yun, a Korean American born and raised in Southern California, completes the trio of influential creators. Grant’s work creates extraordinary from the abnormal, creating artwork that displays simplicity and a spotlight to element.
Collectively, these artists are shaping the way forward for artwork within the Web3 area and embodying the essence of cultural variety and creativity that The Gateway seeks to rejoice.
In a conversational Twitter Space, nft now sat down with Krista Kim, Grant Yun, and DeeKay Kwon to dive into their Korean id, what they’ll be showcasing at The Gateway in Korea, and Korea’s impression on international tradition.
nft now: How has your Korean-American heritage influenced your artwork?
Deekay: Properly, I grew up half of my life in Korea and the half in America. So, this background has influenced me loads as an artist. I imagine my model of artwork, which you already know, folks discover very cute, aesthetic, and nostalgic, it’s undoubtedly influenced by Korean tradition. And the simplicity of design is influenced by America. I went to graphic design college, so I feel that’s an enormous affect there, too.
Grant: So each my mother and father are Korean, however my dad moved to America when he was principally like one 12 months outdated. It’s been fairly cool to, you already know have a guardian who’s like identifies as Asian American, Korean American. After which after all my mother, got here to America shortly after marrying my dad. Korean was truly my first language once I was rising up and I lived in Korea for a little bit bit as a younger child and would journey fairly a bit. My mother and my aunt who each helped elevate me had their Masters in Artwork. Rising up, simply seeing their work on the partitions, which have been principally reflective of Korean traditions was actually inspiring to me.
Krista: My dad is a Supreme Grandmaster of Taekwondo, so he truly pioneered Taekwondo in Canada. He was an actual affect on me in studying about Korean tradition. He taught me and my two youthful sisters martial arts. I keep in mind studying easy methods to meditate, the ethics codes, the self-discipline all of that was very very formative for us rising up. So for me, my artwork as a meditator, bringing Jap philosophy and that mix of east and west is actually what I’m doing. I’m reinterpreting what I’ve grown up with.
nft now: What’s going to you be showcasing at The Gateway Korea?
Deekay: My latest one-of-one bought via AOTM referred to as, ‘Am I Dreaming?’ It’s principally a self-portrait that visualizes how I spend most of my time. I’m normally, like alone at the hours of darkness, you already know, continuously eager about concepts and making an attempt to carry them to life. It’s a combination of battle, enjoyment, and sleepiness and I normally work loads throughout like very late hours. A whole lot of the time, I run right into a wall and doubt myself typically, after which like I take a brief nap. I wished to visualise that and animate that by some means. In order that’s how I got here up with the MI dreaming piece.
Krista: The primary piece I’m exhibiting is ‘Continuum,’ which is a bit that’s kind of touring world wide. I created it again in 2017, and it first began underneath a distinct identify, ‘8 by 8.’ I wished to create this massive display screen activation as a public artwork set up for meditativeness and therapeutic. It’s exhibiting, after all, in Gateway and Seoul, however I simply did Tianjin, China, at Summer season Davos for the World Financial Discussion board. It will likely be exhibiting once more in Davos, Switzerland, for the convention in January. So it’s actually gaining momentum and going world wide as a message for, you already know, bringing folks collectively within the digital realm.
The opposite piece that I’m exhibiting on a smaller display screen is known as ‘Resonance.’ It’s a slowly revolving tough diamond as a result of I see all of us as treasured. And we’re all diamonds. We’re tough diamonds, and diamonds are created underneath stress.
Grant: The piece has the phrase LA in it for Los Angeles, and it’s actually form of a mirrored image of rising up in California, I grew up within the Bay Space. However you already know, oftentimes, we might go right down to SoCal, particularly LA. We had pals and never household, however we’ve got very shut pals there, all Korean as properly. And LA is among the greatest hubs for Korean Individuals in america. And so once I wished to share a bit for The Gateway that might be showcased in Korea, I wished to share work near dwelling as a Korean American. There’s a distinctive tradition to Koreans right here in America and those that are looking for a distinct id aside from those that are native to Korea itself. For others, it may simply be a panorama illustration of Los Angeles. And so it’s actually what you are taking from it. However for me, it’s a little bit bit extra private.
nft now: Korea is at the moment experiencing a second of world cultural crossover. Why do you suppose that’s?
DeeKay: I feel Korea all the time has been on the entrance forefront of the expertise traits, it simply feels fairly pure for Koreans to try to adapt to new issues in expertise, as you already know, as people transfer ahead into the long run. Moreover, Korean tradition had a big affect worldwide akin to Okay-pop, Korean motion pictures, Korean delicacies, trend, and all that.
Krista: The way in which I have a look at it now, it’s actually stunning to see how my kids are so comfy and so blissful making pals. And yeah, it’s rather more multicultural and rather more international. And I feel that with digital expertise, much more so. So I imagine in additional fluidity, and particularly cultural fluidity due to the expertise that kids at the moment are uncovered to.
Grant: I feel this motion of Korean tradition spreading throughout the globe is, I finally do suppose it’s only a results of the nation growing on account of Westernized subsidization, you already know, following the Korean Conflict. However I feel Korea has executed a extremely good job at making the most of all of the alternatives that it’s been given. They’re additionally fairly a superpower with regards to packaging culturally related issues for the remainder of the world to digest, within the type of music and movie.
This interview transcript has been edited for concision and readability.
For the complete and uncut interview, take heed to our Twitter Space.
