Bohwa Kim, Artist
Bohwa Kim (b. 1985, South Korea)
Born in Korea in 1985, I arrived in New Mexico in 2017.
Since then, stories have quietly gathered within me,
and in 2019, I finally began to paint.
I have yet to find a place to truly settle in this world.
My body of work is still small, and at times, it even feels like a burden.
Nevertheless, I want these works to remain,
not as digital images that vanish without electricity,
but as physical objects that endure in the world.
In 2025, I was deeply moved by a line from Sandra Oh’s commencement speech at Dartmouth College:
“
Even if you are perfectly healthy,
you will feel discomfort about things beyond your control…
The muscle to handle this discomfort is built by being in silence.
…
Kindness is the ability to hold our own heartbreak
and continue to live, to resist, to heal, and to remain human.
The kindness I speak of includes courage, respect, and compassion.
It is the foundation of lasting strength.
“
My paintings are an embrace for those standing alone at the edge of the world.
Sandra Oh beautifully articulated the very “edge” I had long envisioned,
and I share her words here as a reflection of my own purpose.
Since I began painting later in life, I do not have a formal CV.
The year I was born, my name,
and the fact that I continue to paint are all that I have.