Forbes Korea | 30 Promising South Koreans Under 30
This is Korean painter Kim Hyun Jung's (28) profile from Forbes Korea's June 2017 special feature 'South Korea's 30 Under 30.' As Forbes Asia named 300 promising young leaders under 30 across the Asia-Pacific region, Kim Hyun Jung was named one of South Korea's 30 in the Arts category, and the article conveys her feelings about being the first in the fine-art field to be selected, having once doubted herself over her social-media activity. Edited by Rana Wehbe (Forbes correspondent), Yang Mi-sun.
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FEATURES SOUTH KOREA'S 30 UNDER 30
Forbes Asia Selection
South Korea's 30 Promising Under-30s
Forbes Asia has named 300 rising young leaders under 30 across the Asia-Pacific region. Here we introduce South Korea's 30 honorees. The youngest is 17.
Edited by Rana Wehbe, Forbes correspondent, and Yang Mi-sun, yang.misun@joongang.co.kr
Kim Hyun Jung (28), Korean painter
Known as 'the idol of the Oriental painting world,' Kim Hyun Jung's work often features a young, vivacious woman in hanbok who resembles a self-portrait. She has been praised for wittily depicting a woman in refined hanbok fully in touch with her desires. Much of her fame owes to social media, but recently her popularity offline has continued to grow as well. Her March 2016 solo exhibition 'Naesoong Amusement Park' drew 67,402 visitors over 27 days, the highest attendance ever recorded by a domestic exhibition. In her interview with Forbes Korea, Kim said, "By communicating with the public through social media and making emoticons, I sometimes doubted whether this path was the right one — but after being named to this year's '30 Under 30,' I felt, 'I wasn't wrong after all.'" She added, "I'm honored to be the first in the fine-art field to be selected. As a woman painter, I'll carry that sense of mission and work even harder."