K-Colors of Korea April 2014 | Page 43

K: Berlin is the new hot spot for artists; can you say why people are so fascinated by this city? What fascinates you about Berlin? Choi: Contemporariness, what is ‚right now‘, the real time which is in use. K: How do you see the German art scene? Choi: Although I didn‘t have enough time to look around, I could still feel the dexterity of life from the existing past of the present. K: Did you found some inspiration for new projects here? Choi: Yes. ‚just air‘ and ‚to me you are…‘ K: You said once you wanted to be a painter, tell us about your development from that wish to the artist you are now. Choi: I am a quasi-artist. I will always choose to be living in the periphery of art. K: You make art out of what others would see only as garbage, so the line between art and waste is thin. Do you think in our society is wasted too much? Choi: I do make a lot of my work from things that I collected from the street; that are thrown out, wasted by others, but I also buy mass amount of products as well. I could be greedy when it comes to collecting objects, and I just don‘t like things being so easily thrown out. K: Plastic is the main material for your work, why do you choose it? Choi: Because of its sot texture and surface, vibrant colors, abundance. And although it is so widely, immensely consumed, it is looked down on: just because it substituted wood, glass, and metal. K: Plastic is lasting, do you wish to be immortal through your art? Choi: Plastic i ́