Yeonsu Ju is a Korean painter based between Europe and Seoul. She has BA in sociology and painting (First Class), MFA in Painting (Distinction). Her work explores memory, presence, and absence through restrained forms, line, and color, often incorporating materials such as Hanji to add texture and depth. Ju has held solo exhibitions in London, Paris, and Singapore and participated in group shows internationally, including in Madrid, Beijing, Los Angeles, and Turin. Her work is included in private collections worldwide, and she has been recognized with awards such as the Cass Art Prize (2023) and the Window Project (2022).

Can you tell us about your background and how you started your artistic journey?

I studied sociology in Seoul before moving to Glasgow and London to study painting. My path to art wasn’t linear—it began almost by coincidence during an exchange semester in Milan. At the time, I was still focused on sociology and had never considered painting as more than an interest. While there, I met the artist Eemyun Kang and began learning from her. One day she told me, “I hope you continue painting ( after you go back to Korea ) .” It was a simple remark, but it stayed with me. It felt like a quiet recognition of something I hadn’t yet realized about myself.

Since then, painting has become the way I make sense of things—an image of myself that feels both natural and necessary. I’ve followed it since, not out of certainty but from a kind of conviction that this is where I’m meant to stay.

How has your artistic style evolved over time?

In the beginning, I was drawn to gesture and immediacy—painting felt like a way to release something internal, almost impulsively. Over time, that energy has become more contained, more deliberate. I’ve grown interested in how restraint can hold emotion just as powerfully as expression can.

Form, line, and color have become the main structure of my work. I used to think of painting as a kind of catharsis, but now I see it more as a process of refinement—paring down, removing noise, and letting the essential remain. The work has become quieter, but also more precise, more aware of the tension between beauty and unease.

How do you stay inspired and motivated to create new work?

I just wait until a certain image comes to me. It’s not something I try to force or plan. The image often appears unexpectedly—sometimes from a fleeting memory, a color, or a physical sensation—and once it arrives, it stays with me until I start painting.

What is your creative process like? Do you follow a routine or work spontaneously?

It’s a mix of both. I have little rituals—like smoking before I begin—that feel almost compulsive, a way of marking the start of the process. I don’t follow a strict routine, but I do have a rhythm in the studio. Most of the time, I wait until a certain image or atmosphere becomes clear in my mind. Once it appears, I work instinctively, almost as if I’m trying to catch it before it disappears.

What role do you believe art plays in social and cultural change?

Art’s most important role is to make people see things differently. It challenges habitual ways of looking, thinking, and feeling, creating a space where perspectives can shift. That shift is the starting point for any real understanding or change—subtle, persistent, and often transformative.

Art doesn’t need to instruct or solve problems; its strength lies in opening perception and attention, allowing new ideas and possibilities to emerge. In that sense, art doesn’t just reflect society—it quietly reshapes it.

What projects are you currently working on, and what can we expect from you in the future?

I’m currently preparing for my solo exhibition at The Third in Seoul. Following that, I have a residency in Los Angeles scheduled for March 2026 and a solo exhibition in Paris later that year.

Through these projects, I aim to continue exploring memory, presence, and absence in my work, using subtle gestures, restrained forms, and materials like Hanji (traditional Korean paper) to create paintings that hold tension and ambiguity. My focus is on making work that feels alive and necessary—asking questions, opening perception, and evolving with each new exploration.

Text & photo courtesy of Yeonsu Ju

Website: https://yeonsuju.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yeonsuju/