Statement
Near Me began not from choice, but from necessity. During a period of physical limitation, my world narrowed to what was immediately around me. Sketching nearby objects became a way to endure time, gradually evolving into a practice of attention. As days accumulated into years, ordinary things began to carry unexpected emotional resonance.
Rather than seeking complete representation, the work explores what remains less visible—the subtle traces of time, light, and presence that surround familiar things. Through these quiet observations, the ordinary begins to reveal something beyond its physical form, something felt rather than fully seen.
Working on mirror-finished stainless steel, I deliberately leave parts of the surface unpainted. The reflective areas bring surrounding space, light, and the viewer into the work, creating a shifting relationship between the seen and unseen, revealing and concealing.
The painted image holds memory and intention, while reflection belongs to the present moment. As light and viewers move, the work changes, never fully settling into a fixed image or meaning.
Near Me remains an ongoing exploration of the ordinary, inviting a slower way of seeing and an awareness of what quietly persists between presence and absence.
Bio
Jong Henry Kim (he/him) is a Korean-born artist with a multidisciplinary background in media art. He holds a BFA in Painting from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and an MFA in New Form Art from Pratt Institute. His diverse artistic training spans painting, drawing, sound, digital media, video installations, and kinetic sculptures.
From 2002 to 2015, Henry ran an advertising company, exploring the integration of technology and art. This experience has greatly shaped his current work, where he blends traditional and modern techniques to develop a unique visual language in painting.
In his 'Near Me' series, created over the past four years, Henry reinterprets everyday objects using mirror-finished stainless steel plates, crafting a dialogue between presence and absence. This approach emphasizes the emotional depth and imperfections of these objects, transforming the mundane into the extraordinary.
Henry's work invites viewers to uncover hidden narratives within ordinary objects, offering both intellectual and emotional resonance as his art continues to evolve.
• 1998 • Pratt Institute, NYC, Master of Fine Arts, “New Form”
• 1994 • School of the Art Institute of Chicago, IL Bachelor of Fine Arts, “Painting”
• 2018 • Mana Contemporary, NJ , Apr
• 2017 • Fairleigh Dickinson University, NJ, March
• 2015 • NABI Museum of the Arts , NJ, 2 person show, November
• 2012 • Jamaica Center for Arts, NY “Digitized Fate” October
• 2016 • Call for bushwick, NYC Jun
• 2015 • NYFA Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program
Artist development program
• 2016 • Yonkers Art Festival, NYC
• 2016 • LLB Gallery, NY
Last Updated 2025.10.31