For founder Amy Kim, ARTIVIST is a community of like-minded people who have a shared passion and interest for art and culture with an international perspective. Based in Korea, it is made up of a nonprofit artist residency program, an art collectors/patrons club, and an exhibition space. Its developing art collection is slated for a future ARTIVIST co-op museum, ultimately offering the chance to learn, interact, and engage in dialogue with the arts. The residency has hosted artists like Dustin Yellin and Agostino Iacurci with curator Afrodet Zuri.
Whitewall recently spoke with ARTIVIST’s Kim, a development expert and avid art collector, to learn more.
Photo by Heojangbeom.
WHITEWALL: How did you come up with the idea of ARTIVIST?
AMY KIM: I’ve always been interested in the power of art to inspire, connect, and move people. Formerly a strategy consultant at Deloitte, I advised cultural institutions, municipalities, and the ministries of tourism and culture on large-scale public art and cultural projects, and in the course of so doing, I learned so much about art, and how it is the progenitor to and catalyst of change. As I discovered more and more, my passion for art grew, and I wanted to share this with others.
Although the spotlight is on Korea as an art and cultural hub these days, I realized there was a serious gap in art education and the ways art is inculcated on all levels. Many want to start collecting art, but don’t know how to go about it—many young, potential collectors are interested but don’t have a basis of knowledge or are intimidated. The art market in Korea, although thriving, is still relatively new. I saw a big opportunity to bring discovery, knowledge, and access to my peers and add to a truly international and vibrant art culture in Korea.
WW: Tell us more about the artist residency program.
AK: The program currently supports three to four artists a year. Working with our resident curator, we select artists from all over the world to experience Korean culture in an immersive way to inspire creation of works influenced by their new environment. We want this to be a time of freedom and exploration for the artist, to step outside of the comfort zone. The residency period culminates in an exhibition and a dinner in honor of the artist. During the artist’s residency, we introduce him/her to collectors, curators, museums, public art opportunities, and brands who may be interested in collaborating. We hold public and private talks with the artist who also participates in our philanthropic endeavor in an educational program for children.
Korea is a great exporter of its culture, but our culture can only continue to grow if we also interact globally and import culture too. By bringing an artist here, we learn the cultural influences and perspectives of that artist, just as that artist is influenced by Korean culture, then it becomes a world culture of sharing, mutual understanding, and appreciation.
Photo by Heojangbeom.
“I saw a big opportunity to bring discovery, knowledge, and access to my peers and add to a truly international and vibrant art culture in Korea,”
Amy Kim
WW: Who have been some of the artists who have participated in the program, and who is ARTIVIST’s next artist in residence and what do you have planned for them?
AK: Since our launch this past September, we have hosted American artist Dustin Yellin and Italian artist Agostino Iacurci, and we are really excited to bring Brooklyn-based artist Talia Levitt to our program in Korea this spring. I love her trompe l’oeil paintings of tapestries that superimpose transparent figurative imagery on archival paintings; instead of being flat, the illusion is rendered with texture through paint-cast objects such as buttons, stitching, and embroidery. I am fascinated by her technique of applying acrylic on the canvas to mimic real cloth and the exquisite detail. It is something I believe our Korean community will appreciate as Koreans tend to value detail and technical perfection.
WW: What is Club ARTIVIST and how is it different from the other membership clubs in Korea?
AK: The vision for the club is to bring together a community of people with a common interest in discovering, learning about, and supporting art, design, and culture. All of the membership clubs are very similar in Korea in that they all relate to hotel clubs, industry-specific clubs, food and beverage clubs, bars, and lounges. There is no club that is centered around an overarching mutual passion and interest in art, design, and culture. Many membership clubs have failed in Korea because of certain cultural proclivities such as people not wanting to mix with others and certain cultural biases. I want Club ARTIVIST to break down those barriers, and open communications, leading to a sharing of information and culture.
These days Koreans travel all around the world, and many younger people are schooled abroad and there is a heightened interest in art—likewise, others have a strong interest in Korean artists and the Korean art scene. Although based in Korea, ARTIVIST also has global members to enrich our community experience. We will offer meaningful programming, such as curated panel discussions, artist and collector talks, artist studio visits, customized museum and gallery tours, curated trips to art fairs around the world, and collaborations with arts and culture organizations around the world.
Photo by Heojangbeom.
“I want Club ARTIVIST to break down those barriers, and open communications, leading to a sharing of information and culture,”
Amy Kim
WW: How would you characterize Korean collectors?
AK: The Korean art market is very young and new collectors tend to be focused on art as an investment which drives their acquisition choices. They are afraid of making a mistake, and they are always looking towards art that will rise in value. The “art” of collecting is very new here, with the exception of some older OG super collectors. There are very few art advisors in Korea—the art industry is centered around galleries, museums, and academia. I wanted to bring awareness of good artists in various genres around the world and give access to global art experts so that our community can learn, and to promote a thoughtful evolution of the way they think of and experience art.
WW: You are a collector yourself? How did you start collecting?
AK: I come from a family of finance professionals who have always appreciated art and design. Over the years, they’ve supported regional artists and collected some meaningful works by significant Korean artists, such as Lee Ufan, Park Seo-Bo, and Lee Bae. I’m a young collector like so many of my peers, and I’m thrilled to discover new and emerging artists, as well as learn about the work of very established artists and masters. I’m at the beginning of my collecting and rather than having a specific theme or focus for my collection, I simply buy what I love. These days I am looking at artists such as Flora Yukhnovich, Cristina BanBan, Adrian Ghenie, Tahnee Lonsdale, Egami Etsu, and more.
Photo by Heojangbeom.
“I’m a young collector like so many of my peers, and I’m thrilled to discover new and emerging artists, as well as learn about the work of very established artists and masters,”
Amy Kim
WW: What ARTIVIST’s plans for Frieze Seoul this September?
AK: We are developing our programming for September, which will include our Frieze artist-in-residence and exhibition as well as events in collaboration with other global art and culture organizations, museum groups, and brands that are driving art collaborations.
WW: What impact do you think Frieze Seoul has had on the landscape of the art scene in Korea?
AK: Frieze Seoul has been a big factor in raising awareness of and interest in international galleries and artists. Korea has been ripe for an international fair of this caliber, and the fact that an internationally renowned fair such as Frieze has chosen Korea sets a high benchmark. The high quality of the galleries, artists, and substantive programming as well as the influx of visitors from around the world has impacted and magnified the art industry in Korea, stimulating and contributing greatly to the thriving art scene in Korea.
