Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1120864
D E PA R T M E N T 9 KEYFRAME Wrestling holds a special place in Nooree Kim's heart. Her family couldn't speak English when they moved from Korea to Canada, so watching WWF wrestling became a family tradition. "WWF was one of those shows that could be enjoyed by anyone no matter the language barrier," she says. "The exag- gerated movements and personalities of the wrestlers didn't really need an explanation." Today, Kim has channeled that love of wrestling into a series of sculptures called "Soft Bodies." The process begins with a wire frame of the piece, which she covers with clay. Once the figure is set, she creates a cardboard "coffin" with the figure inside and pours silicone over it. Then she cuts the model out, revealing a mold that can be reproduced by pouring resin inside of it. Her passion for sculpting started when her mom found an ad for beginning ceramics classes as a child. She was always a crafty kid, so she took to it immediately. She now works as a prop designer for We Bare Bears but has come back to sculpting as a creative release from her digital day job. "Having to design on paper or on a tablet, I feel like there is a sort of physical barrier between me and my art. But with sculpting, it's so direct, I can touch my art and feel the shapes with my hands," she says. "Soft Bodies" is also a study of movement in sculpture. Inspired by Italian sculptors like Bernini, Kim studied the way a frozen moment in time can still convey the "sensuality and intimacy of the sport." As the two wrestlers grapple on the ground, the piece contains all the tension of a real wrestling match, like they might snap into a new position in front of your very eyes. Visit her Instagram page (@nooreeoreo) to see her collection. — Rusteen Honardoost ARTIST: Nooree Kim TITLE: Soft Bodies MEDIUM: Resin SIZE: 9" x 4" x 3" A R T & C R A F T SUMMER 2019 9 BODY OF ART