Korean artist Minjung Kim celebrates the seventh edition of Dior Lady Art with intricate collages of materials and arresting colour gradations.

A reflection of Dior’s feminine and modern ethos, the Lady Dior’s extraordinary journey is encapsulated in its timeless and elegant silhouette. With its architectural frame and supple Cannage motif, its inimitable style is revisited season after season in varying interpretations that entice and inspire—a true object of desire. This year, Dior has once again invited numerous artists to reimagine the iconic bag for the seventh edition of Dior Lady Art. “Driven by a spirit of innovation and limitless inventiveness”, the project is a celebration of creativity, culture and craftsmanship.

Poetic Tranquility

For Korean artist Minjung Kim, the project presented an invitation to delve deep into oneself in search of tranquility. Her works are often defined by her “minimal” aesthetic, which lends a poetic and dreamlike visual journey to the Dior icon. The bag is punctuated with vibrant hues, graphic collages, and delicate materials that together, further enhance the bag’s audacious elegance. In this exclusive interview, the artist shares her thoughts on the collaboration and the inspiration behind her unique creations.

Can you describe your artistic universe in a few words?

Serenity within beauty.

When and how did you decide to become an artist?

When I was 7 years old. I have always conceived of my work as a quest towards beauty in serenity. To share, to communicate, to discover, to contemplate … my works incite the viewer to explore oneself and the world, in a constant search of quietude.

What do you consider your most emblematic works, and how would you define them?

The Mountain And Street series. From the experimentation of my practice is born a collective meditative action nourished by the effects of matter, transparency, and gradations of colours. My “minimal,” repetitive aesthetic is illustrated through a superposition of collages that give life to abstract compositions.

What values do you want to express?

Through the repetition of actions, I want to achieve a meditative mind state, so that the resulting work transfers this state of quiet to the viewer. I am looking for a poetic harmony, as an homage to delicacy. What does the house of Dior represent to you? Beauty through rigor and an abundance of generosity.

On her Inspiration …

What do you like the most about the Lady Dior bag, an iconic emblem of the house?

Master craftsmanship combined with great design and elegance.

How did you reinterpret it? And what does this new Lady Dior symbolise for you? What were your sources of inspiration?

I wanted to put the emphasis on the sweeter elements of femininity and dreams, through the interplay of colour. As for the source, it was my existing artwork. I reinterpreted the Lady Dior through four dream journeys. Printed directly on the bag, my painting “The Street” is punctuated with flowers in organza tulle, reflecting a savoir-faire of excellence. My creation “The Story” is revisited in mink, while an embroidered version, combining couture and sportswear elements, adorns a micro-bag. Finally, I was inspired by the ancestral art of hanji paper to reveal, in relief, a mountain range illuminated by pink shades in the colours of dawn.

The Intricacies of Savoir-Faire

What kinds of savoir-faire did you highlight? What materials did you use?

Excellent craftsmanship and exceptional materials that inspire me, like the traditional korean art of hanji paper, as well as silk tulle and mink.

What is your relationship to fashion?

Fashion is an individual expression through creative people’s endless research. It is the juxtaposition of two desires: the person who made it and the person who wears it.

In such a particular context, what does a project like Dior Lady Art represent for you?

It is the first time i think through the consumer’s mind. When I paint, I do so for myself but to make these fashionable objects, I become more altruistic, which makes me feel useful. Art can be applied to useful things, but it is no longer art—it is the sharing of goods.

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This article was first published in Harper’s BAZAAR Malaysia Dec 2022 issue.

All images courtesy.