Webtoon Artist Kian84 Shows New Art at London’s Saatchi Gallery

When Kian84 made a cameo appearance as a webtoon artist in a TV drama Webtoon of the dayit was a nod to his previous career as one of South Korea’s most popular cartoonists. fashion king, Published from 2011 to 2013.

The webtoon, which comically portrayed the quirky side of teenage culture, was eventually adapted into a film starring Joo Won.

“I really wanted to make movies when I was younger,” said Kian84. “To do that, I need to invest a lot of money. I couldn’t pursue my dreams when I was young, so I became a webtoon artist. It was like making a movie, I wanted to make a dream possible.”

A successful webtoon can be profitable if it is published, especially if it is adapted into a TV drama or movie. But juggling the grueling schedule required to publish a webtoon can easily cost an artist their life. After finishing the second series, BokakwangKian84 decided to refocus.

“I was a webtoon artist for 10 years, and in those 10 years I never had a day off,” he said. “I was always chasing deadlines. After ten years of feeling pressure to finish a webtoon on time, I decided a few years ago that I wanted to quit. This is how I decided to focus on my art.” That’s why I started doing webtoons, and I’m just focusing on my activities as an artist.”

In March 2022, Kian84 will hold his first solo exhibition at the Superior Gallery in Seoul and is preparing to present a new work at the Saatchi Gallery in London. The London exhibition will run from October 12th to 16th. start art fairIt also provides a background for a documentary about Kian84.

The focus of his London exhibition is the decline of Korea. birthrateThe average number of children born to South Korean women in 2021 has dropped to 0.81%.

Kian84 said, “I learned that South Korea is the number one country for not having children. I wanted to somehow express this in my work.This exhibition is about the current situation in Korea and childbirth.There are new paintings and drawings that have never been exhibited before. I don’t know, but at least 4 or 5 points.”

Start Art Fair founder David Sikuritilla has been fascinated by the South Korean art scene for decades. As its name suggests, Start aims to help artists launch their careers, provide a global platform to increase exposure, and help new collectors launch their collections. In 2021 they brought three Korean artists to London.

“The Korean art scene is nothing new to me, but it’s making waves internationally,” says Ciclitira. “In 2009, I began working with emerging Korean artists to showcase their work at home and around the world. I was inspired by how to bring a contemporary perspective to traditional forms.”

Kian84 is not the first Korean webtoon artist to venture into gallery exhibitions.Written by GuiGui man of passionas well as Joo Ho-min, who produced the hit series, recently held an exhibition with the godsAs more and more readers enjoy webtoons, it is inevitable that the media will influence what is considered desirable in the art world. It seems impractical given how his career began.

“When I first started drawing webtoons, I lived in a semi-basement like you see. parasite, And I only ate ramen,” he said. “That’s how I started. I was literally a starving artist. To be able to exhibit in London is a dream. It’s so gorgeous. I still dream about it.”

He claims he is much happier now that he can focus on painting.

“When you draw a webtoon, you have to draw it, you have to tell a story, you have to make it at the same time. Now I can focus on my work.”

Kian84 is not only an artist, but also a TV personality. For the past six years, he has been a regular on South Korean reality variety shows. I live alone. In the award-winning show, he and fellow cast members talk to single celebrities about how they live their lives.

“My comics were so popular that I was invited as a guest on the show,” he said. Maybe the reason why people liked ‘I’m not an actor or a singer, I’m just an ordinary person that people can relate to.

While visiting the glamorous homes of actors and K-pop stars, I live alone, Kian84 remembers exactly how his career began and is grateful to the people who helped him escape his days in a semi-basement apartment. To show his gratitude, he decided to donate his 80 million won (about $58,000), the proceeds of his first show, to support young people learning art. Without a loyal audience, he thought, he could not have succeeded as an artist. So it was important to give back.

“For 10 years my webtoons have been read by young people,” said Kian84. “My main source of income was drawing comics for young people, so I wanted to be able to help young people realize their dreams of becoming artists.”