Lot 148: Grace Kelly VS Clark Gable

Dong Yoo Kim (b. 1965) Grace Kelly VS Clark Gable signed 'KDY'; dated '2013' (lower right) oil on canvas 162.2 x 130 cm. (63 7/8 x 51 1/8 in.) Painted in 2013

162.2 x 130 cm.

Modern visual culture has undergone a new development under the composition of television and internet imagery through miniscule pixel dots of colour. This unique visual phenomenon has profoundly affected the aesthetic concepts and creative vocabulary of contemporary artists. Kim builds his works with miniature portraits that resemble the pixels dots of today's graphic technology. Furthermore, under our society's tendency to iconize and worship idols, the images of certain characters have been objectified through integrating miniature portraits of Clark Gable into enlarged portraits of Grace Kelly. Kim's use of simple thick brushstrokes to depict each small faces is indicative of his particularly high level of techniques and through training. Unaided by technology, his meticulous gradation of colour intensity within each face combines to form the singular facial images. The infused imagery not only creates stunning visual effect, but also points to the blurring line between what is real and unreal under the endless visual possibilities in contemporary art.