Hello, I’m Jia Kim, a botanical painter. I create works using a new artistic technique I’ve developed called “plant painting.” I use actual plant leaves and stems, along with paint, to imprint the shapes and textures of plants onto fabric. This work began when I saw a photograph of a leaf engraved on fabric, which sparked my curiosity. I fell in love with the natural beauty of how each leaf’s unique texture and form could be preserved exactly as it is, and I’ve continued working with various plants ever since.

Since real plants serve as the materials for my work, the plants I use change with the seasons. Just as seasonal ingredients transform our tables, my artwork features the seasonal plants of each time of year. I personally collect all the plants used in my pieces. I usually gather them from spaces I move through regularly—along walking paths or during travels—using them immediately for painting or pressing them to record in my plant journal.
The works I’ve shared this time were created using wildflowers from the stream near where I often take walks, as well as leaves from the mountain behind my home. These wildflowers and leaves exhibit different color variations with each season and even from one day to the next. I incorporate nature into my work using the various colors that this season and nature create—the changing landscapes of the sky, soil, stones, insects, bird feathers, and more.

Just as painters capture images on canvas with oil paint, I’m a craftsperson who paints on fabric with textile dyes. Since fabric is something we use most frequently in daily life, I think it feels natural and fitting for artwork featuring plant patterns to be used in everyday fabric items.
The plants in my work aren’t artificially cultivated flowers from gardens, but familiar plants that we can easily see around us. I hope that through these plants embedded in everyday items, people can find the comfort that nature provides. Nature is always close to us, but in our busy urban lives and anxious minds, we lack the leisure to look around us. There’s no space for natural landscapes to settle in our hearts. I hold onto the hope that the images of nature found in everyday items will bring peace to people.

When I collect plants, I notice that even leaves growing from the same tree have completely different colors, veins, shapes, and patterns—no two are alike. I believe that every living being on Earth has its unique pattern. Since each has a different texture and form, I think there exists a unique beauty that belongs to each individual.
We live our daily lives forming relationships with objects and people. Through these relationships, we both create and discover ourselves, but we also sometimes lose our true selves by wearing masks to gain attention and recognition. I think the most beautiful version of ourselves isn’t the one trying to impress others, but our honest selves—ourselves as we truly are when viewed without pretense. I capture the journey of discovering my authentic beauty through the various leaves in my artwork.

My first piece was created using flowers and leaves that can only be found in this season, embodying Amorepacific’s concept of authentic beauty—the NEW BEAUTY keyword. I hope you’ll discover June’s unique beauty through this work made with early summer plants.
June is such an incredible season for connecting with nature. When you lie under a tree and gaze at the sky in this perfect weather that marks spring’s end and summer’s beginning, a landscape unfolds that can only be seen at this time. The blue sky becomes a canvas where leaves are drawn, and you can hear the rustling sound as those leaves brush against each other and sway. My first piece, “Under the Tree,” captures that scene.
My final work, “Green Blue,” contains the journey of leaves transitioning from spring to summer. The color that comes to mind when we think of summer is blue—the clear, pleasant sky without a single cloud, the sparkling light of seawater. The green leaves in the work capture spring’s vitality, while the blue leaves embody the vigor of the approaching summer. I hope that through this work, you can anticipate the freshness of the coming summer.

Leaves grow by gradually making space for one another and respecting each other’s boundaries. Rather than competing to stand out more, they know their time according to nature’s way, simply blooming and fading as they are, living in harmony. I hope you can discover the unique beauty that belongs to each of you, plant the seeds of that beauty, and live with comfort and tranquility.