For Korean-born, New York-based gallerist Tina Kim, art has always been a family pastime and profession. “Traveling often to see exhibitions and attend art fairs was very much a part of my upbringing. Being in a family that was constantly around art helped me hone my taste and develop my point of view,” says Kim.
Since establishing her eponymous gallery in Midtown Manhattan in 2001 and moving to her current Chelsea location in 2015, Kim has presented exhibitions and programs that reflect her international perspective and interest in artists who are not represented in New York. While in many ways the gallery is responsible for bringing the Korean Dansaekhwa movement of the 1970s to international audiences—with several historical exhibitions for artists such as Ha Chong-Hyun, Park Seo-bo, and Kwon Young-woo—her program also includes artists such as Ghada Amer, Tania Pérez Córdova, and Davide Balliano.
Dansaekhwa masters, such as Lee Ufan and Ha Chong-Hyun, have pride of place in Kim’s Upper West Side townhouse, but so do works by Louise Bourgeois, Anselm Kiefer, and Bill Viola, all with whom Kim has closely collaborated. “The artworks that I have at home are by people I respect greatly and who have hugely influenced my career and me as a person,” says Kim. “Their art crosses all borders and genres, and they don’t speak to a particular audience, which is important to me.”
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—Stephanie Sporn
