“Over time, cracks will show in the wood. The color may change. Like my black hair that turns white, I want my work to change with me.”
Artist Heum Namkung spent 30 years working as an industrial engineer. When work felt burdensome, he would spend time in nature and feel his stress melt away. As he healed from decades of stress, Namkung began his second career as a woodworker. Much of the wood the artist sources are from his hikes and uses branches that have already fallen due to natural causes. If you look at Namkung’s work, you’ll notice the more intricate the wood’s grain, the simpler his design. It is in this lack of ego that the artist acts as an agent of the wood. He lets the wood lead. Namkung does not stamp his name on his work for this very reason. The shapes of his work mirror shapes found in nature – leaves and seeds and rocks – and he tries his best to showcase wood’s innate beauty with a simple oil or wax to enhance the natural color of wood. The artist’s wish is to see each of his pieces grow in age with him as a living object. “Over time, cracks will show in the wood. The color may change. Like my black hair that turns white, I want my work to change with me.”
