Van Gogh Reborn! - Chapter 79
“Wow..”
Sihyeon made a fuss while watching a Newtube video.
“You’re 10th out of 254.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Then, why are you laughing?”
“ Even though it’s not important. I’m happy to hear that there are a lot of people who like me.”
“You can just say it’s good, honestly.”
That’s true.
“All right. It’s good.”
“Hahahah..”
Sihyeon laughed and once again played the video.
Ko Hun, who had an individual exhibition in Korea, cannot participate in the opening day and will join on May 1.
I think he’s going to bring out a new work, but I’m also worried about how far the work has been completed.
I really have a tight schedule for the next 2 months.
After participating in the Whitney Biennale, I have to go to California.
I decided to meet Christine Nolan there.
I don’t know if I can fully express his imagination, but I’d like to give it a try.
After that, I have to stop by Germany, so I am very busy next month.
The video on the channel Alex Factory has since referred to several authors.
There are many people whom I don’t know.
It wasn’t until Alex Factory’s second-ranked Artist was announced.
No 2. Henry Marceau (France, Age 32)
Next is Henry Marceau.
Does he need an introduction?
He is the most-earned Artist for two consecutive years last year and the year before.
“I know this guy. He bought your painting last time, too, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you close?”
“No.”
“Why? Isn’t the statue outside, is this Uncle?” “
“…it’s something we have to clean up?”
We put Henry’s statue in the garden, but if it rains, it’ll corrode again, so we had to put an umbrella and a raincoat.
At Uncle Bang’s earnest request, my grandpa and I have given up the idea of throwing it in the garbage.
Henry’s obsession with coveting himself is amazing.
I look forward to what kind of work he will create and surprise me this time.
“Even though this uncle made the most money. Why is he in 2nd place?””
I don’t know.
It’s unclear what the criteria are.
Although he is the most famous and outstanding Artist since he made a lot of money, I wonder if there is an Artist who goes beyond Henry Marceau in a video that seems to be based on popularity.
Grandpa and Aunt Mirae are not participating, so I don’t think it’s them.
No. 1 Ferdinando González (USA, Age 39)
“Ferdinando González?”
It’s a name I’m hearing for the first time.
He looks Spanish by name, but he’s an American.
The long-awaited first place is Ferdinando Gonzalez.
Is there an Artist who makes better use of things and images around us?
He is one of the greatest Artists of this Era.
I can’t understand the meaning of using surrounding things and images.
Sihyeon also seems to be on the same page as me.
When I searched, it said he’s a Conceptual Artist.
“Hun, What’s conceptual art?”
“I don’t know.”
I have visited several art galleries in Europe, but I have little knowledge of modern art since I spent most of the time enjoying the works of the past Era.
The latest Artist I know is Pablo Picasso, even though he was born in 1881 and died in 1973.
His paintings are classified into modern art.
Modern art, called contemporary art, is still unknown territory to me.
That distinction doesn’t matter.
The art performed by people living in this era is also modern art in that sense.
It’s not an unknown territory.
Grandpa, Aunt Mirae, and Henry Marceau are all part of contemporary art.
So is my painting.
“Huh?”
Sihyeon tilted his head, then shook his head.
“I’ve never seen this person before.”
I wonder what kind of work he will be making if he is introduced as No. 1 by beating Henry Marceau.
“Guys, It’s time for lunch?”
At that moment grandpa came into the studio.
He looked at me, Sihyeon, and our surroundings and opened his eyes wide.
We got caught with a bunch of snacks all over the place.
“Oh, my God. What’s all this? How can you eat so many snacks? Huh? Are you setting up a snack shop? Is this why you guys didn’t come down for Lunch?”
“Try this. It’s good, grandpa Ko.”
Sihyeon recommended whale chips to grandpa.
Grandpa can’t get angry when he smiles and treats him politely.
“Okay, I’ll eat later. Sihyeon, you should eat veggies for lunch? Snacks are so bad for your health.”
Grandpa’s words shocked the son of a snack maker.
I whispered to grandpa.
“His father is the president of a snack company.”
Grandpa clapped his hands in embarrassment.
“Sihyeon, what I mean is it’s not good to eat too much. Huh? Your father who makes delicious food is doing such a great job. Sihyeon, don’t you think so, too?
“Yes. Daddy also said I shouldn’t eat too much. I’ll stop eating.”
“Okay, okay.”
Sihyeon nodded, and grandpa breathed a sigh of relief.
It was a little funny looking at the scene.
“Oh, grandpa. Do you know this guy?”
I showed grandpa the face of Ferdinando Gonzalez.
“Of course. Who wouldn’t know him?”
“What kind of work does he do?”
“Hmm. It will be very different from the work you’ve seen so far. Oh, I guess he’s too going to the Whitney Biennale,.”
“Yes, he is.”
“Then you’d rather see it in person than I explain it to you. Art should be seen, not listened to.”
I agree with my grandpa.
I’m curious, but I can feel the joy only when I see the work as it is.
Henry Marceau and Ferdinando Gonzalez.
I’m looking forward to the Whitney Biennale even more.
⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩
The work for the Whitney Biennale was decided as a self-portrait.
I want to break away from the image that has hardened and show a new self.
I want to take off the paint and express a figure with another painting below it.
I got the sketch.
I can hardly think of a way to effectively express this.
I believed that oil pastels would be easy to use, but they are not.
Even though I spread it out thicker than usual and carefully scraped it with a knife but it fell down helplessly.
Furthermore, as grandpa said, when I applied it to the canvas, it did not stick like drawing paper, so I had to spray the fixing liquid.
At this rate, I have to start from scratch.
“I’m having a headache.”
It’s already been five days since I went to school.
There’s not much progress even if I keep challenging myself until I fall asleep.
It is the first feeling of hopelessness since I opened my eyes in the hospital.
The work is not progressing, and the date of going to New York is just around the corner.
Even if I try to soothe my nervousness, it doesn’t work out as I wish.
‘Once again.’
This time I found a wider knife.
The oil pastel should be peeled off like paper, but it is a failure again.
With this, even if I draw a work, it is obvious that it will be ruined in the middle.
“…. a little more.”
It’s a little better to lay down the blade a little more and carefully put strength on it.
However, even that was not satisfactory.
“Hun, why don’t you go to bed early today?”
Grandpa came in.
He stretched and sighed deeply.
“I’ll do a little more and go to sleep grandpa.”
He patted my head regretfully and looked around.
“You’re practicing scraping the crayon.”
“Yes.”
I don’t know anyone else, but I can tell grandpa knew what I’m trying to draw and how I’m trying to express it.
“I’m drawing a self-portrait. I want to scrape my face.”
“Hmm.”
“I hope it comes off like an apple peel, but it’s not as good as I thought.”
Grandpa looked at the oil pastel and shook his head.
“It’s going to be hard. You’re going to have to apply a lot of it to do that. Plus, you’ll have to peel it off before it dries completely, and you’ll have to scrape it off before it dries properly.”
“That’s right.”
It’s not easy enough to think about it again.
I’m not sure if it’s possible now.
Grandpa never mentioned why I wanted to express this and why not draw something else.
There was a small smile at the corners of my grandpa’s face.
“I’m sure you can do it. Don’t worry too much.”
He encourages me by hugging me.
Perhaps grandpa knew the answer, but the reason he isn’t telling me is because he recognizes me as an Artist.
I would also have shook my head if grandpa tried to tell me the answer.
This is my job.
This is a place to show myself fully to the world by getting rid of myself as Vincent van Gogh and getting away from the situation where I’m still introduced as Ko Hun, grandson of Ko Sooyeol.
“Is there a good way?”
My worries deepen.
As the night grew and even the sound of grass bugs became more frequent, I rubbed my heavy eyelids.
I scratched the hard oil pastel on the palette with the intention of finishing it today.
The overlapping colors are revealed from the top after repeating a few times due to lack of strength.
It is a technique called Sgraffito.
It is a method of partially revealing the paint underneath by scratching the surface, and it is also the principle of this work.
However, I was unable to touch the peeled part because of the desire to maintain the shape as part of the painting without dropping it from the work.
Oh, it comes off pretty much the way I want it to.
It is also important how moderately oil pastels dry.
However, it will take time to scratch out the entire painting, and as a result, there will be some delays.
I need to pay attention to the deformation caused by the time difference, so I need to reduce the number of scratches and expand the area.
I Peeled the paint like an apple, to maintain its shape.
“Ah.”
Early in the morning, the sixth day since I started working.
A good way flashed in my mind.
I don’t know if it’s possible, but it’s much better than not trying.
Trivia
Felix González-Torres.
Cuban-born American visual artist. González-Torres’s openly gay sexual orientation was influential in his work as an artist. González-Torres was known for his minimal installations and sculptures in which he used materials such as strings of lightbulbs, clocks, stacks of paper, or packaged hard candies.
