Artist Interview: Jinwon Chang
In residence this fall, painter Jinwon Chang offers a ‘behind-the-scenes’ of his time at Tusen Takk and describes how the residency has injected new ideas and fresh perspectives into his artistic practice.
How has being in residence at Tusen Takk, living and working alone, influenced your practice?
Living and working alone at the Tusen Takk Foundation is a precious opportunity to get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life in New York City. The time allows me to be completely immersed in God's creation to focus on work. In close communication with nature, I’m discovering the beauty encoded and planted by God; this will naturally be revealed in my works.
Is there anything about the land or the architecture that influences how you approach your work or how you spend your time in residence?
It is everywhere and everything here. In particular, I am very impressed with the way the architecture of the Guesthouse, in which I work and stay, responds to nature. The architecture emphasizes straight lines and invites the organic forms of nature inside, resulting in beautiful harmony. I look forward to discovering the beauty of nature and similarly bringing it into my work.
What are you currently working on? Are your works in progress different from what you had initially planned?
During the residency period, I have been working on two projects simultaneously:
The first project is the originally planned Reveal 2021 series (title changed from InBetween). In this series, I seek to reveal the beauty of truth hidden in nature by the Creator. The works are created in ink, black gesso, acrylic paint, metallic paint, and metallic color pen on Hanji, a traditional Korean mulberry paper.
The second project is a series of work that reflects my daily life here for the duration of 66 days. During the residency period, I have been painting one work, 12×16 inch, a day and I plan to create a total of 66 paintings.
A work from Jinwon’s Reveal 2021 series in-progress at Tusen Takk
Detail image of the above work from the Reveal 2021 series
80 paintings created in residence, one for each day Jinwon has been at Tusen Takk
Why is it important to you that your work "reveals the beauty found in God's creation"?
I want to share the goodness of the Creator, the beauty of the Creator, through my work. The beauty of that truth can set us free and fill us with love and joy.
Throughout your work, you've described your subject as "spiritual light," depicting “the light that is in itself, the light that is in God.” Is there anything that has struck you about the light here?
The tall trees that surround this place, the white light that penetrates the trees, the wind that moves the trees, the ever-changing Prussian blue and turquoise colors of Lake Michigan, the waves, and the sky.
It seems that the invisible essences of truth, beauty, joy, and gratitude that I find while breathing and painting in perfect harmony with this environment are the light I experience here.
In what ways do you seek for your work to affect audiences and, as you have said, “to bring healing?”
This is one of the difficult questions. I tend to communicate primarily with the public through exhibitions of my work. When I see their reactions, I understand how the silent language present in the work affects people. I am able to visibly see the effect of that which is unseen. In fact, I've witnessed viewers shed tears in front of my work. Of course, it is clear that this is the work of the Holy Spirit. I think that the beauty of the truth that I am seeking to depict touches the hearts of those that spend time with it.
What would you hope to share with the artists who follow you at Tusen Takk?
I would like to share with artists who follow me how spiritual experiences and personal enlightenment can positively change life, and how these beliefs can be reflected and shared through art.
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