Artnom’s “Childhood Heart”

SHOUT Art Hub & Gallery is pleased to announce the new solo exhibition Childhood Heart (Hong Kong edition) by Korean Contemporary artist, Artnom (b.1971), showcasing 24 artworks by the artist. Artnom’s medium of acrylic on canvas is characterized by the bold heuristics of primary colors, strong texture and juxtaposition between the ‘pop-art’ subject in the foreground and ‘pop-culture’ peripheral references, making the essence of Artnom’s work stand out so bright and lively. Having participated in over 24 shows, including key galleries and museums such as Pyo Gallery Seoul and Daegu Art Museum, Artnom has intrigued and excited the art scene with his signature storytelling.

Recurring motifs such as rainbows, hearts and cartoon characters bring out expressions of innocence and fantasy of a “Childhood Heart.” Artnom teases the audience by injecting his own experiences of the world and ingénue perceptions against a neon dream of Asian cultural values and meanings. Cartoon characters from his childhood, such as those by Hayao Miyazaki, have inspired the artist and been revived in his artworks. This unique aesthetic wittiness of Artnom’s reinterpretation of cartoon characters with recognizable icons of contemporary artists demonstrates, in the words of Art Critic Hyeon Jeong Ahn, “the artist’s spirit of how to interpret and breathe with contemporariness.” By reimagining and reinterpreting, Artnom’s cheeky take on borrowing from old motifs is at equilibrium with his own bold, rainbow-like instructions of his artworks.

“I think the main motivation for my work is to sincerely express what I like rather than defining a certain subject with messages… characters are all different aspects of myself,” Artnom had once commented on his artistic process. He sees his works as an extension of his reality, conveying a sense of joy, peace and comfort. The artworks address the shared human experiences of curiosity and pondering the social codes of right and wrong. In doing so, Artnom challenges the status quo and disrupts deeply rooted ideas and ideals the audience may have. By combining and referencing modern codes and status symbols with humorous characters, the individualistic stance marries the depth of the Korean modernity and aesthetic sensibility superbly.

“I want to face the world and myself in a balanced way with my humor.” Artnom’s candidness ultimately introduces the audience to a bright and lively domain that encourages one to cerebrally relate to cultural values, yet feel optimistic and elevated via the kaleidoscope that is Artnom’s art.

Artnom Solo Exhibition – Childhood Heart

Exhibition Period: February 10th – March 14th, 2023

Opening Hours: 11:00 to 20:00 (Daily)

Venue: SHOUT Art Hub & Gallery, Shop OT308A, Level 3, Ocean Terminal, Harbour City

About Artnom

‘ARTNOM’ is the name given by the artist himself, which literally means ‘art guy’. As the name suggests, the artist’s approach to art speaks for itself; he projects fun and joy into his art world where he reconstructs symbolic icons from traditional Korea folktales (such as peonies, magpies, and tigers) and turns them into humorous and friendly images with strong and vivid use of colors. While he moves flexibly between painting and design based on his training and working experience as a painter and designer, ARTNOM has established a new breakthrough in Korean art scene that stands out as a crossline between fine arts and pop culture. ARTNOM refuses to categorize his art into one field, but rather seeks to empower the public with new and creative energy of art as he continues to experiment, reconstruct, combine old artistic elements into new ones in his works that break the boundaries between traditional and modern, East and West, and high art and low art. ARTNOM began to draw public attention as he collaborated with Samsung for 2019 Samsung Galaxy S10. A collection of his works resides in major venues including National Museum of Contemporary Art’s Art Bank, Gana Art Center, and Seoul Cultural Foundation.

About SHOUT Art Hub and Gallery

SHOUT Art Hub & Gallery differs from conventional galleries as we focus on street art and pop art, and we embrace the energy found in graffiti. Our core value is to respect creativity and we hope to create an environment for sustainable development in the art scene through this belief to bring more beauty to this planet and the people. We also hope to become a local art base to attract diverse artists and viewers to come together and create an energetic and wonderful world.