Kim Yikyung is a pioneering figure in contemporary Korean ceramics. She belongs to the generation of artists who helped revitalise the Korean ceramic tradition after its disruption during the colonial period, with a particular interest in distilling the essence of Korean porcelain into a distinctly contemporary idiom.
Originally trained as a chemical engineer, Kim began her ceramic practice at Alfred University New York, where she had a formative encounter with the British ceramicist Bernard Leach. Impressed by his reverence for Joseon Dynasty era porcelain ("this is the future ceramics") at a time when national pride in Korean ceramics was low, she was inspired to serve as a research assistant at the National Museum of Korea. There she was not only able to study Joseon porcelain closely but to gain a crucial, hands-on understanding of the tradition that has guided her practice ever since.
Grounded in her scientific training, Kim continues to explore how the character of Korean porcelain might be expressed through today's materials and technologies, rather than replicated through historical methods alone, an approach embodied in her enthusiastic embrace of gas firing.
Now, aged 91, her porcelain practice encompasses a striking breadth: from her revered Moon Jars to smaller sculptural works and production wares that reveal a more playful, yet equally sincere, dimension of her language.
Kim's works are held in leading public collections internationally, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, British Museum, and the Powerhouse Museum.
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