Many people believe that everyone’s body is exactly the same, that we’re all flesh and bone reproductions of a mold that has been inherited throughout millions of years. Yet, there’s so much that our bodies say about us. A single flick on our wrists says something beyond a simple physical motion. Our behavior and demeanor are not taken out of a mold. They’re the means through which we express our genuine and unrepeatable essence.
Each body is unique in its own beauty. Every finger, toe, elbow, and kneecap is somehow different to the other billions of members that move freely across the world. Every trait in our body gives us a sense of individuality. We’re not manufactured vessels of organs. We’re all unique material beings. Every single trait of our anatomy says something about ourselves and withholds our life’s stories and emotions.
Every single bodily gesture is an expression that goes beyond us. Our movements, however, as ungraceful as they may be, express a reality that goes beyond the material limits of our reality. They’re the vessels of our true spiritual essence.
How much grace can fit a bending ankle? What supreme kind of vigor can a arched back hold? What type of strength does a tense arm convey? How many skills can suit a hand?
Watching a nude body is the closest we can get to observe a soul in its full expression. Admiring a fragment in its whole grace shows us how much can be said through a single part of us. Each of them is a world of its own: every detail tells a story, the texture and color of the skin, the tension they withhold, the frailty of every single bone and joint.
WanJin Gym, alias Willey, is a South Korean artist who, through his keen eye, captures full bodies and their fragments against an ethereal dreamscape. Merging hyperrealistic detail with surreal backgrounds and concepts, he captures the beauty of our form to express the complexity that lies within every one of us. Through dreamlike mirages he captures the raw and vibrant spirit of every single part of our material being.
Willey’s artwork focuses on painting our shapes with a deep interest for detail, not only in form but also in color. The skin of the bodies that he captures are rich in tones textures, each fragment he portrays is different from any other in its own way. His obsessive attitude for looking at things from a closer perspective reveals the hidden spiritual quality within every single piece of us. Through his paintings, we can see with microscopic detail the shrill amount of individuality that a fragment of a body can utter.
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Gym’s art focuses mostly on bodies charged with electrifying power caught into deeply surreal atmospheres. Inspired by the paintings of Lucian Freud, he focuses on an excessive amount of detail on his portraits, conveying the same touching rawness and visceral quality that permeates most of the English artist’s work. Besides being a painter, Willey’s is also an animator and independent filmmaker. You can find more of his work on Instagram (@willeys_art) and his Youtube channel.
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