Kim Tschang-Yeul

Kim Tschang-Yeul (1929–2021) was a Korean painter internationally renowned for his lifelong dedication to depicting water droplets, a meditative practice he began in the early 1970s that became his signature motif. Working primarily in Paris after emigrating in 1969, he developed a highly refined, almost hyperrealistic technique for rendering droplets on surfaces, imbuing the works with Zen Buddhist philosophy and themes of renewal, memory, and healing. His practice is deeply rooted in the trauma of the Korean War and a desire to cleanse and transcend suffering, making him one of the most significant figures in Korean modern art.