Kim Geon-yi, the designer behind the fashion label Angdiol, is unveiling his first solo show, Mute Structure, at Art Space Pearl.
After 34 years in Daegu’s fashion scene, this seasoned designer is taking his first steps into contemporary art. When I met him at the gallery, he couldn’t hide his excitement. “I’ve always been thirsty for art and dreamed of having an exhibition,” he said. “I’m curious how people will react, but if even one person feels the joy I found while making these pieces, I’ll be satisfied.”
He’s been making art for some time. A habitual museum-goer when he travels, he turned to art as a kind of balm whenever the fashion business felt draining. In the studio, he could set aside complicated business concerns. “I didn’t start this work to make some grand statement,” he said. “I began it for myself — to calm my mind and relieve stress.”
There were no exotic materials at the start. His early works used colorful leftover fabric scraps he’d saved and rolled into circular forms — a clear nod to upcycling and sustainable fashion.
That same ethos carries into the piece Meomum. For ethical reasons, some leather was no longer usable for garments, so he repurposed it into art. He paired lambskin with raw tourmaline, leaving both untreated to show them as objects that remain in the world on their own, rather than items meant to be worn.
His piece Breath was created by sewing white and deep navy fabrics together and rolling them into coils. Between the rippling layers you can feel traces of the emotions he carried during each moment of making. “On some really tough days, cutting fabric for this work brought me great joy and even exhilaration,” he said. “My breath is in every layer.”
What stands out in the show are the abstract, geometric sculptures.
“This is a fragment of a skirt,” he said. “I intentionally removed familiar patterns so visitors wouldn’t immediately think the forms came straight from fashion. I often design asymmetrical pieces and garments with pleats, and I translated that unique language into these works.”
Watching his flat pieces fold into three-dimensional forms makes the link between fashion and architecture unmistakable. With a strong interest in architecture, he also included an AI video titled Ventilation that arranges fabric pattern fragments as architectural elements.
In the video, those pattern fragments become sky-facing windows or fill walls and floors. Lines gather into planes; planes define space — a visual rhythm that offers a surprising sense of calm and balance.
He wants to keep making work that passes on the comfort and happiness he finds in creating. “I’d like to try new things, like suspending pattern pieces from wires so they float in space,” he said. “I hope the things I love will give others energy and move them.”
The exhibition runs through April 12, and the gallery is closed on Mondays.
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