NADA Miami 2024

Through enigmatic paintings, Calvin Kim seeks to preserve and prolong the unfolding of dreamlike, intimate moments. Like peering through a window to catch a glimpse of someone else’s dream, the works transmit psychological undercurrents through form, color, light, and texture, conveying the mood of an experience rather than mere description. Kim’s subjects are depicted amid contemplative, emotional states. Absurdity, humor, and lightness reappear throughout Kim’s works, offsetting themes of melancholy and vulnerability. An atmosphere of magic suffuses his scenes – from the warm, shimmering glow of the headlamps, to a cluster of wildflowers blooming from the darkness – indicative of nature’s continuous cycles of birth, death, and renewal.