Bohyeon Hwang (Busan, South Korea, 1992) graduated in 2025 with a degree in Painting from the Frank Mohr Institute. Prior to that, she completed a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in painting at Ewha Womans University in Seoul. In her work, she explores the tension between the technique and the meaning of her paintings.
“My working process focuses heavily on the surface of a painting. I work with thin, dry layers of oil paint and use stiff pig bristle brushes that leave distinct marks. I also sand and scratch with a craft knife and remove paint with cotton buds, creating thin layers rich in texture and suggesting form. This is particularly the case on large, unstretched canvases, sometimes as big as 180 x 240 cm. This allows me to work intensively on the surface; a stretched canvas would tear. The process of erasing and reapplying almost feels like a negative form of painting. At Forma Aktua, I am exhibiting at least three recent paintings from 2026 in which I explore this method in greater depth.
“I’m not concerned with depicting it as accurately as possible.”
I am currently working on a new large canvas exploring ‘broken’ forms. During my studies in Korea, there was a strong emphasis on technical skill and working with photographic references. As I delved deeper into oil painting, I discovered that this medium, due to its texture and slow drying time, offered more scope for experimentation and self-expression. On the Master’s programme at the Frank Mohr Institute, I was given the freedom to work more autonomously: not just to explore what I paint, but above all how and why. I paint recognisable motifs, such as pomegranates or tree trunks, but my aim is not to depict them as accurately as possible. I explore the gap between what you see and the meaning that an image can convey. It is precisely this tension that interests me.”
Bohyeon Hwang’s work is on display at Forma Aktua until 5 July 2026, as part of the group exhibition Young Talent.
✍️ Dinnis van Dijken
📸 Hobbe Hollands
This article previously appeared in KUNST. magazine #4 (p. 35)