Busan Ilbo (Dec 11, 2002)
Kim Tae-ho receives the 2nd Busan Fine Arts Award. He describes art as “the greatest joy.” His work centers on naejaeul (internal rhythm), built through repeated layering and scraping of paint, creating dense, heavy surfaces that embody time and labor. His paintings integrate material, gesture, and process, often involving thick accumulations of acrylic that are carved back to reveal structure and depth. Critics note the works convey the “weight of life,” reflecting sustained physical effort and introspective discipline developed over decades.
Busan Ilbo (Jan 11, 2003)
Kim Tae-ho (Hongik Univ.) receives the 2nd Busan Fine Arts Award. At the ceremony, critics note his consistent, non-trend-driven practice and his established position in Korean contemporary art. In an interview, Kim expresses gratitude and states he hopes to contribute to the development of Busan’s art scene.
His work is described as involving the accumulation and carving of heavy paint layers, sometimes exceeding 100kg, conveying the weight of life. He emphasizes continued dedication to large-scale works and sustained artistic practice.
Busan Ilbo (Jan 8, 2004)
Kim Tae Ho’s Internal Rhythm works are built by layering thick paint and carving into it, creating dense, rhythmic surfaces. The process—adding and removing—emphasizes material weight, time, and physical labor, while rejecting traditional painting to form new, textured abstractions. The exhibition presents about 20 works from this series.
Artist Review – Kim Tae Ho
“Internal Rhythm of Concealment and Revelation”
Kim Tae Ho (b. 1948, Busan) studied painting at Hongik University and later became a professor there. He has held over 20 solo exhibitions and received major awards including the Busan Fine Arts Prize (2003) and Korea Fine Arts Grand Prize (1982).
Since the 1970s, his work has evolved from spray techniques to hanji-based processes and later to his signature method of repeatedly applying and carving paint on canvas. His practice centers on layering, removal, and reconstruction—revealing an internal rhythm within the material.
His paintings embody a dual structure of concealment and exposure, where dense surfaces and rhythmic marks coexist. Through this process, he explores the tension between order and freedom, structure and spontaneity, forming a distinctive abstract language rooted in materiality and time.
On “Internal Rhythm” (내재율) – Structure, Process, and Meaning
Since his first solo exhibition in 1977, Kim Tae Ho has held over 20 exhibitions, developing his work through distinct phases—from spray-based figurative forms in the 1970s, to hanji and scratching techniques in the 1980s–90s, and ultimately to his Internal Rhythm series.
His process begins with a grid drawn on canvas. Paint is repeatedly applied in layers—often dozens—then carved away with knives. Through this accumulation and removal, hidden colors re-emerge, forming a surface where inner rhythm and external structure coexist. Small, cell-like units build up across the canvas, resembling countless “rooms” or compartments.
Kim’s work operates on a dual structure of concealment and revelation. The surface both hides and exposes its internal system, creating a paradox where depth and surface, control and chance, coexist. The visible texture is not merely decorative but reveals the underlying process and time embedded in the work.
Rather than focusing on external representation, Kim seeks an internal “rhythm” within matter itself. His paintings emphasize the physicality of paint—excavating color like uncovering something buried—suggesting a process of discovery from within.
Ultimately, his work reflects a sustained inquiry into structure, material, and perception, where repetition, labor, and subtle variation produce a dynamic yet controlled abstract field.
Kim Tae Ho’s Internal Rhythm develops from a grid-based structure into a system of emergence, where form is not simply drawn but arises from layered processes. Rather than separating painting and carving, he integrates them—building up paint and then cutting into it to reveal underlying layers.
His work reverses conventional pictorial logic: the surface both conceals and reveals the internal grid. By stacking layers and then scraping them away, he creates a paradoxical structure where depth and surface continuously interact.
Unlike earlier experiments with spray and hanji, this method emphasizes physical intervention—closer to sculptural action than illusionistic painting. The result is a surface built from accumulated material, where small units form a larger rhythmic system.
This approach reflects a long development. Early works explored the relationship between concept and representation, but over time he shifted toward material presence and process. The grid becomes both a controlling structure and a field of variation, generating countless small differences across the surface.
In later work (post-1980s), his focus moves toward revealing the inherent qualities of materials. Instead of flat spray surfaces, he uses layering, scraping, and physical manipulation to produce texture, chance effects, and rhythmic irregularity—emphasizing the vitality (“energy” or gi) within matter itself.
Kim Tae Ho’s Internal Rhythm emerges from decades of practice, evolving from earlier explorations of form and representation into a mature focus on material “energy” (gi). His work reflects the social and cultural conditions of Korea from the 1970s onward, translating experiences of industrialization and urbanization into abstract visual structures.
In the 1970s–80s, his work engaged with rigid social structures through grid systems and repetitive processes. By the 1980s–90s, fragmented surfaces and material experimentation expressed tension, division, and instability within society. In later works, these elements evolve into more stable yet dynamic systems, suggesting a reconciliation between structure and freedom.
His paintings operate through a duality of concealment and revelation. The surface appears unified, yet beneath it lies a complex process of layering, carving, and accumulation. This reflects a deeper inquiry into existence—how internal forces and external structures interact.
Rather than focusing on external objects, Kim emphasizes internal rhythm and material presence. His process—building up and excavating paint—becomes a metaphor for uncovering meaning from within, akin to revealing something buried beneath the surface.
Ultimately, Internal Rhythm represents a culmination of his long investigation into material, structure, and perception. It embodies both personal practice and broader cultural logic, connecting individual expression with deeper, historically rooted ways of understanding form and space.
Nordbayerische Nachrichten (Apr 30, 2008)
“Life in Twenty Layers” – Kim Tae Ho Exhibition
Kim Tae Ho’s exhibition at Galerie artodrome presents abstract paintings built through the repeated layering and removal of acrylic paint—often up to twenty layers. His process involves applying thick paint and then scraping or cutting into it after drying, creating textured, perforated surfaces and complex color structures.
From a distance, the works appear monochrome, but up close they reveal intricate depth and subtle color variation. The technique produces a woven, almost fabric-like surface.
Kim’s work reflects themes of modern life, particularly isolation and structure within contemporary society. Through precise, repetitive labor, he constructs images that balance control and chance, density and openness.
The exhibition highlights both his technical rigor and his distinctive visual language, emphasizing the materiality of paint and the passage of time embedded in each layer.