Faculty of Art

Drawing and Painting

Esther Kim

Sleeping in Silence

My new series "Happiness on the most typical day" talks about gratitude, joy, and happiness on the most ordinary day. Unexpected, unprepared, the pandemic had taken my rights one by one like supernatural, omnipotent force. It first caged me in my most comforting house and acted Big Brother, severing all human interactions, which I rarely but sometimes enjoyed. And one day, it finally blew up my boiler tank—unrelated and random, but it is the pandemic I blame. For a week until the technician came, my home was not a place for drinking, cooking, showering, and all water things. I then realized things could go worse, and I still had something to lose. The unexpected experience of losing the most fundamental part of my life urged me to share my gratitude through my paintings. Appreciation became my theme and inspirational source of creativity. In my painting, I am expressive, whimsical, and joyful. I have liberated myself from framing the picturesque material world or reenacting philosophical elevated modern art in my canvas. I instead filled it with simple and vibrant colours and childlike doodles. I filled it with something that I find joy in, simplicity, flatforms, and animated colours. I simply want to deliver this sense of happiness to my audience.