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Born in Seoul, S. Korea and raised in Los Angeles, Chang Park decided early on that he would pursue a career in art. It eventually led him to studying illustration at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, Ca. He chose illustration as a major simply because it offered more drawing and painting classes. "I was absolutely in love with figure drawing. The process of observing the figurative pose and transferring it through your hands and on to a paper was a very meditative and almost ethereal process for me. I probably spent most of my time at Art Center in figure drawing classes." After seeing the work of illustrator Matt Mahurin, Chang decided to head to New York City wanting to work more in the editorial field. His first interview was with Steven Heller at the New York Times Book Review who gave him his first assignment to illustrate a book review about the Holocaust. His next assignment didn't come until nine month later. "That first year in New York, I learned the hard way that success in illustration is less about talent and more about perseverance and being passionate about your work. I worked odd jobs and dropped off my book as much as I can. I'd say it took about three years before I started getting enough commissions to survive just from freelancing. I was pretty determined to make it however long it takes because frankly, I didn't have any backup plans." With a bold figurative style driven by conceptual thought process, Chang has created illustrations for clients that include Time, The Village Voice, Elektra Records, Ecko Unlimited, The Criterion Collection, Activision, and Pepsi.
How would you describe your work? My work is representational, figurative, but I wouldn't say that it's realism that I'm after. I always like to develop a concept first and then build a narrative to support that concept. I try to visually communicate a subtle, quiet tension....capture the calm just before the storm, so to speak. I'm very drawn to projects that deal with social or psychological elements. Who've had a strong influence on you as an artist? There are many great painters who have had a profound influence on me. Francis Bacon, Lucien Freud, Veermeer, Goya, Paul Cadmus, Gerhard Richter, Chuck Close, just to name a few. Films like Blue Velvet, Taxi Driver, and Apocalypse Now has been influential as well. They always felt more like moving paintings to me. I remember seeing them and thinking, damn, I'd like to paint like that. And of course life experiences always play a role in your work. What is your process in creating your work and does computer play any role? It's very much a mixed-media process. I create a collage on the computer and print them out on different surfaces which are then collaged back together by hand and used as the canvas for my oil paints. The collage serves as my under-painting for the final image. You've also been teaching for a while. What role does it play in your life and work? I've been a faculty member at Pratt Institute and Parsons School of Design for about five years now. It's become a much larger and important part of my creative process than I ever imagined when I first started teaching. It has motivated me as an artist as much as I have hopefully motivated my students. It's really kept me on my toes to be in touch with what's happening in both fine art scene and the field of illustration because my task as an instructor is to bring out and help each student to develop their own unique and personal aesthetic and I won't be able to do that effectively if I'm not exposed to much art myself. Some of my former students have formed an artist collective based in Brooklyn. Their work can be seen at www.kingsboroughproject.com. They're very talented and their work is impressive. Sure they're struggling right now, paying their dues as we all have, but it's also going to be their most progressive and productive period as well. You're also a big collector I hear? Yes, I have collected about sixty works from my students and have my eye on a couple of pieces that I want to add to my collection this semester. Some I have purchased, many have been generous to give me their work for my collection. They're displayed everywhere at my home and in my studio.
I see a lot of work that is more decorative and less conceptual. There's also a significant movement mainly from the west coast that are really influenced by outsider art and folk art. Trends come and go, but I think illustration right now is as diverse as it's ever been. There are very progressive work done by artists such as George Bates, Nate Williams, and Jason Holley. There are also amazing work that is very much figurative and narrative by artists like James Jean, Tomer Hanuka, and Erik Sandberg. So I think it's really exciting to see many artists really conveying their personal and unique aesthetics in illustration. Far as changes in how it's applied, Illustration is a much broader term now than what it used to be. It's not work that is created just for print. It used to be that you create your portfolio to target editorial, advertising, or publishing markets. Now illustrators' work play a significant role in animation, computer games, motion graphics and many other areas that's created really interesting formats in how illustration is presented and viewed. Are you pursuing any other endeavor outside of illustration? I've been working on a series of paintings in a larger scale. Personal fine art work I guess you can say, different than my illustrations in both the process and aesthetic. I feel much more comfortable keeping my personal work and professional work separate. Hopefully I can seek out a gallery space when I'm done with the series. Whether it will lead to another direction for me creatively and personally, I can't predict. But, wherever it might be, I'm looking forward to it. >> See more work from Chang Park >> See other member spotlights on the member spotlight index >> Find out more on how to become an altpick.com member |
