Meet Dave Young Kim | Artist/Muralist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dave Young Kim and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dave, is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
There’s a perception that mural-making is sexy and glamorous, what you might see on social media is a 6-sec clip of a mural magically appearing out of nowhere, with cool music in the background and maybe some dancing interspersed throughout the process. When the reality is there is so much time spent inside before any paint is even considered, hours/days/weeks/months of sitting at the computer researching the subject, as well as all the communication with the people funding the project, budgeting, planning the logistics. And then once the mock-up of the mural is done you have to meticulously go through it and determine what colors you’ll need. After which you have to mix the colors yourself or get them mixed. Once on-site at the beginning and end of each day, you have to load and unload, all the paint which weighs 11 lbs and 2.5 lbs for a gallon and quart, respectively. And then 8 hours of standing mostly on one spot rolling paint or constantly moving your arm up and down with a brush, the same repetitive motion, with resistance from the friction of the wall. Every day for as many days as it takes to paint the wall. In the heat and the cold. It’s a literal workout, labor. I always say mural-making is an exercise in troubleshooting, you show up as prepared as possible but also with the knowledge that something will inevitably go wrong: the lift stops working, someone steals your paint, I’ve even had the battery of the lift get stolen, you’re outside in the elements anything could happen, even if it rains you’re on a schedule so you figure out how to work in spite it. The closest thing I could compare it to is construction, everything down to sitting on Home Depot buckets turned upside down to have your sandwich at lunchtime. Don’t get me wrong, I love doing it and it’s a blessing to get to imagine something and then put it up at such a grand scale for the world to see, but it’s much more than meets the eye!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?

Home consists of the memories and sensations we associate with the place(s) we felt most loved and nurtured. Yet as the passage of time shapes our life trajectories, our idea of home becomes increasingly fragmented as the distance between then and now becomes irreconcilable. We can’t go back in time to that moment and relive it. Places morph; memories falter. But despite, or perhaps because of this, we are all looking for a place to call home. My work is based on this concept. The sentiment stems from my being a child of two people who immigrated to the country as barely adults, the challenges they faced as they settled here, and how that subsequently affected my upbringing and created obstacles for me growing up. Also, I think inherent to generations of people separated from their motherland is an almost intangible sense of longing, a desire to reconnect.

I’m currently working on a pretty good-sized mural on the side of the USC Asia Pacific Museum in Pasadena. It depicts birds that represent each Pacific Asian country and Islander nation. I’m always excited about the latest thing I’m working on, that’s where all my energy and time are focused at the moment. As soon as I’m done it’s always on to the next.

Getting to where I am today is a tiny bit of a mystery, mixed in with lots of missed adventures, good people, timing, perseverance, location, relentless pursuit, patience, disappointments, education, many late nights or ungodly early mornings, fate, or maybe luck. It’s been a long arduous journey, So many have pursued it and so few have gotten to the place they want to be. Given the sheer number of people who have braved it, it’s still such an unpaved path for every new one who does. I think for me it was inescapable, I was put into art class as a kid, as a hopeful remedy to my diagnosed ADHD and hyperactivity and it stuck, I’ve been doing it ever since in various forms and intensities throughout my life, it’s always remained albeit competing with different interests depending on what life stage I was in. One thing for sure is it hasn’t been easy and it’s been a long ride to get to where I am today, I think what helped is from that early point in my life, I had family support, whether intentional or not (I think it was survival on their part), I had them encouraging me to do art, putting me in art classes, showing up to my art contest events, I don’t think they ever thought I would pursue it as a career later in life. But it was too late the idea of art became ingrained in me, forged as part of my identity and I was talented for my age.

Throughout I played with the thought of art as a career but I don’t think I ever decided for myself mentally that I would pursue it, knowing that it was such a precarious profession with a pretty low success rate kept me at bay. I was always interested enough to continue working on improving my skills, looking at art and other artists, and submitting my work as opportunities presented themselves, so there was sustained consistency. It took a decade after college and many winding roads of career choices later before I finally decided I would take the leap and apply to MFA programs as a start to a fully committed goal of being a professional artist. In hindsight, I prolonged the inevitable but I don’t know that I would’ve gotten there if I hadn’t gone through that long passage of life experiences, people, and shaping.

When I give artist talks or have studio visits with students I tell them every path is different, you could attempt your career now or later in life, it doesn’t matter. The reality is you have to first figure out a way to take care of yourself, pay your rent, and find nourishment, all the while working on your skills, and the way you think about things, and continue to immerse yourself in art. Eventually, you’ll reach a tipping point – financially, mentally, strategically, and then you’ll have to make a decision. The only thing you can’t do is cut art out of your life, keep it alive and ever-present even if only deep in your heart. You can’t change circumstances but you can control your determination and subsequent actions.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’m not a trendy person at all (I wish I was more), I don’t know all the hip spots so I’d take them to all the nostalgic haunts, the ones that I know from my time growing up here, and the few newer ones I have a connection to. We’ll start up north with some nature, go to Huntington Library or Descanso Gardens (which is a little bit more manageable), get the blood flowing, and have a lot of intimate time to walk and talk. There’s something about being in nature that calms the soul. Depending on where we are we’d head to Pasadena, drive the neighborhoods there, and stop by the Pacific Asia Museum. Boston Lobster in Rosemead nearby has good Chinese food. Heading west, Chinatown is always fun, and has a few great galleries, although my favorite Tierra Del Sol just moved to West Hollywood. Angry Egret Dinette is a good food spot or even ABC Seafood. I like the dive bars there as well. Going into downtown Yangban Society for the food and ambiance, and while there we have to do drinks next door at Kodo. There are chiliburgers from the original Original Tommy’s, and Pink’s hot dogs are a must-do. Wash all the grease down with a boba tea from Boba Guys in HiFi. We have to stop in Koreatown – Dan Sung Sa, and then karaoke Korean style at night. Larchmont Village for food and ice cream, before diving through the neighborhoods in Hancock Park for old times sake and seeing the house I grew up in. The Hollywood Bowl is magical so we’d have to catch a show there. We’d then head south to Gardena to see my studio and get Japanese food from the plethora of authentic options. Rent bikes in Hermosa Beach, and ride over to Redondo Beach Pier to get fresh steamed crab, this is an experience in itself, then get on the sailboat. Grab gelato from Capri and then dinner at Ryla. On the last night, we’d cap it off with a bonfire at Dockweiler Beach and invite chef Andy Nanoom to do an in-house Korean dinner experience.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
If anyone deserves recognition for how far I’ve come in life and career it’d have to be my wife of 11 years, Elaine McIntyre Kim. I can’t say it’s easy being married to an artist. From the very beginning, we got married midway through my time at graduate school, working towards my MFA in Studio Art. Imagine being a newlywed and your husband is away all day and many nights working on projects at school, we had to have lots of serious discussions about getting a dog, luckily our cat Honey Meow Meow miraculously appeared out of nowhere. And then even after there was no natural lead into a job, she supported us as I gradually figured out how to build a career. It’s a long, slow journey that requires lots of patience, belief, perseverance, and understanding – everything she exemplified. Even when things started picking up, mural painting often required traveling to far-off places, and then adding one, two then three young children to the mix is not for the faint of heart. She’s endured all of that with continued unwavering support. 

Website: https://www.daveyoungkim.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/daveyoungkim/

Image Credits
Head shot: Jeremiah Francois