'Golf Shoe Artist' Kim Younghwa: "I Must Return the Love I Received"

The First Domestic Golf Oriental Painting Artist's 60th Exhibition
Descendant of Danwon Kim Hongdo, Father a Master Craftsman of Intangible Cultural Heritage
From Making Golf Trophies to Creating Standard Portraits of King Muryeong
"I Will Strive to Place Oriental Painting at the Center of the World"

"I feel like a celebrity."

This is the current status of Kim Young-hwa, a renowned painter known as the first artist of Oriental painting specializing in golf in Korea. He is opening a new horizon in modern Oriental painting through golf paintings. In an interview with Asia Economy on the 20th, Kim said, "My schedule is at a celebrity level. I finished an exhibition in Daegu earlier this month and even filmed a donation variety show," adding with a bright smile, "My body is tired, but my heart feels lighter because I am doing what I wanted to do." Kim also smiled and said, "My dream is to give back the love I received through golf," and asked for much interest in his talent donation activities.

Kim Young-hwa is painting a golf picture in his studio in Cheongdam-dong.

Kim comes from a very special ‘family.’ He is a descendant of Danwon Kim Hong-do, a genre painter from the Joseon Dynasty. His father is Kim Yoon-tae from Dobong, a master ceramic artist designated as Important Intangible Cultural Property No. 13. It is a family with a different artistic lineage. Since childhood, clay and ceramics were his toys. Kim said proudly, "I think there is a unique DNA of the Gimhae Kim clan. Master Kim Hong-do pioneered a new genre through ssireum (Korean wrestling). I am realizing that through golf."

At first, Kim did not pursue the path of a painter. His father also did not encourage an artistic career. He recalled, "When I was 14, a school teacher saw my talent and persuaded my father. My father tested my drawing skills on ceramics." Drawing on ceramics is a difficult task unless one has strong brush control and boldness. Kim expressed gratitude, saying, "I think I am who I am today because of special training."

Kim graduated from the Department of Oriental Painting at Hongik University College of Fine Arts and its graduate school. Afterward, he ran an art academy for over 10 years. Although he followed an elite course, something was missing. He explained the reason for his new challenge: "I earned a lot of money but became more depressed. As money came in, I felt very lonely. I quit the academy and became a full-time artist. I wanted to live a complete life as an artist."

Artist Kim Young-hwa is sketching during a round at the golf course.

It was at this time that he encountered golf. The new attempt to paint Western golf using Oriental painting techniques was refreshing. He sketched on the cart while playing golf and then started working on the pieces back in his studio. He said, "Drawing while playing a round was not easy. I think it was possible because I could do quick sketches." Kim is deeply fascinated by golf. His personal best score is 77, achieved at Pocheon Montvert CC. At his peak, he played 100 rounds over two months at Borneo CC in Malaysia. He recalled, "I was happy drawing while playing golf."

Kim also frequently visited foreign golf courses. Among them, he cannot forget Pebble Beach Links along the west coast of the United States. He admired, "There was nothing artificial; it was completely natural. The golf course revealed the natural terrain as it was." Domestically, along with Montvert CC, he named Daegu Palgong CC as an impressive golf course. Kim described, "When the fog thickly settled over Palgong CC, it felt like being in a utopia."

Seoyeon Jeong is smiling brightly while holding the ceramic trophy made by artist Kim Young-hwa right after winning the KG Ladies Open last month.

Kim is also a painter who has created golf trophies. He said, "Since childhood, I thought about trophies while looking at ceramics. I thought it would be nice to make trophies." Officials from domestic golf tournaments contacted him, and he completed new trophies by painting on ceramics. Kim’s trophies have been used in domestic men’s and women’s professional tournaments. Representative tournaments include the Gabia-Interburgo Masters, Kim Young-joo Golf Women’s Open, and KG Ladies Open.

Kim did not only paint golf. He pioneered various fields. The most representative work is the standard portrait of King Muryeong, the 25th king of Baekje (National Designation No. 99). He said, "Conducting historical verification was a very difficult process. It took three years to complete the painting." Recently, he has been working on expressing the inner world of golf through Oriental landscape painting. He calls it ‘The Magical Moment.’ Kim explained, "It contains the meaning of the meeting of dreams and reality, straight lines and curves, East and West, past and present."

Kim boasts an enormous amount of activity. This year, he held his 60th exhibition in New York. Next month, he is preparing a donation exhibition in Korea and a planned exhibition in Mexico in December. He expressed his ambition, saying, "The small ripple that started with golf seems to be returning as a great honor. Just as Korean golf has become the best in the world, I want to make a global impact with golf paintings." He continued, "Master Kim Hong-do created ‘K-Art’ filled with love for Korea. As his descendant, I am continuing that tradition through golf Oriental painting," and expressed confidence, "‘K-Culture’ is popular worldwide. The same goes for paintings. The day when Korean paintings stand at the center of the world is not far away."

Kim plans to focus on donation exhibitions in the future. His life motto is ‘Thoughts become reality.’ He shared his philosophy, saying, "I feel very good to be able to help people in need through talent donation. I want to share the love I received through golf. I want to be an artist who widely benefits the world."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.