Theory of the 'Schematic Medium'

2025.08.16

1. Definition of 'Schematic Medium'
: A Performative Generative System of Dynamic Equilibrium

‘Schematic Medium’ is the core methodology penetrating my artistic world. It is a structure of thinking that does not seek to reproduce the essence of the world, but rather to model how the world operates. This term is defined on two levels:

Schematic
Dictionary-wise, it is the adjective of ‘Schema,’ meaning a diagram or chart. However, from the perspective of cognitive psychology, it transcends simple signs to mean the ‘Cognitive Framework’ or ‘Structure of Thinking’ that humans use to interact with the world and grasp events. I expand this concept in my work to function as a ‘flexible and recursive language of the system’ that governs and connects all plastic acts.

Medium
Generally, it refers to the ‘means’ or ‘materials’ used to implement art. However, in the context of contemporary art, it is used as a term encompassing entire modes of expression such as painting, sculpture, and objects. I define this concept beyond the dimension of physical materials, expanding it to mean the ‘Total Sum of Expressive Modes’ where thinking mediates with the world and plastic practice takes place.

Therefore, my Schematic Medium is not about producing individual works such as paintings, drawings, sculptures, objects, or installations in an independent and fragmentary manner. It is an integrated strategy where all media possess organic relationships, constructing a massive series or a systematic system. In other words, it is the process by which my unique ‘Cognitive Schema’ passes through various media to become concrete. It does not settle into a fixed form but is in a state of ‘Dynamic Equilibrium,’ constantly seeking the optimal balance point between internal order (concept) and external stimuli (environment).

2. Essence: Re-definition of ‘Plasticity (造形 - Johyeong)’

I define my work not as simple ‘Making’ but as ‘Plasticity (造形 - Johyeong).’ While ‘Johyeong’ literally means ‘to create form,’ for me, this is not an act that merely produces a visual result.

“To create form is to re-contemplate the world.”

Plasticity is a ‘Generative Language’ through which perception constructs the world and establishes order. Therefore, my work is not an expression of emotion or a reproduction of an image, but a process in which thinking creates form on its own—a Praxis that visualizes the operation of thought, the order of senses, and the formation process of the world.

3. Operating Principle: From Closed Structure to Open Generation

Schematic Medium operates not through the logic of linear ‘cause and effect,’ but through Circular Causality and expansion from within. This system is a single organic circuit where Plastic Language (Human), Structure (Space), and Practice (Time) mutually resonate.

Embodiment of Plastic Language (Sensory Passage)

If the Reductionism of the past, like that of Piet Mondrian, sought to find an immutable ‘essence’ by summarizing the world into points, lines, and planes, I reinterpret the world through my own ‘Unique Plastic Code.’ My plastic language is a reduction of fundamental concepts into minimal signs, which are not simple symbols but ‘Conceptual DNA’ reflecting my philosophy. I use this language as a ‘Sensory Passage (Interface)’ where humans and the world resonate with each other, establishing an organic communication system that mutates according to the environment and context like a living organism, rather than a fixed symbol.

Flexible Structuring of Concept (Field of Relations)

If Sol LeWitt left ideas as ‘instructions for practice,’ my Schema occupies space as an ‘Evolving Algorithm.’ The content of the work exists not as a fixed message but as ‘Potentiality.’ Individual works function not as isolated fragments but as an ‘Organic Network’ connected within a massive organism. This functions as a ‘Relational Expansion’ that goes beyond being placed in a physical location to access the flow of space and generate meaning.

Repetition and Difference (Temporal Practice)

‘Repetition’ in my work is not mechanical reproduction but a ‘Performative Rhythm’ that records the flow of time. Repeated brushstrokes and acts are a Ritual confirming the ‘Existential Imperfection’ of humans who cannot reach the Ideal. The minute ‘Existential Errors’ that occur at every moment are not simple plastic traces, but Events proving that time itself is structurally operating through my body.

4. Plastic Development: Constructed Schema and Trajectory of Expansion

Schematic Medium is not a fixed style but is in an ‘Evolutionary Process’ that constantly updates its version over time. The series below serve as Key Reference Points that have anchored the concept of Schematic Medium in reality, and as a Foundation for Expansion that will branch out infinitely in the future.

Schematic Painting (2D Projection)
Painting is the first record of my Schema projected onto a plane. The <One Hour> Series is a record of performance capturing intuitive impressions by setting a limited time schema (Duration), while the <Colored-Line Painting> Series serves as the system’s visual vascular system where internal energy is expressed through the flow of lines and colors. Beyond simple flat works, these form the basic grammar of plastic language that will expand into three dimensions and space.
Schematic Drawing (Conceptual Index)
Drawing is the process of erecting the skeleton of thought. The repetitive performance shown in <Semi-Circle & No.9> is a conceptual Index revealing deficiency and imperfection. Rather than aiming for a completed image, this serves as a blueprint verifying the logic of the process where concepts transform into concrete shapes.
Schematic Object (Dimensional Transition)
Objects are experiments in ‘Dimensional Mutation’ where the schema of the plane penetrates into 3D physical space. They demonstrate how the plastic language constructed on a plane structurally adapts and reconstructs into new forms when it encounters the gravity and volume of reality, proving the evolutionary stage of the system adapting to its environment.
Schematic Installation (Spatial & Relational Expansion)
Installation is the present tense of the ‘Relational Expansion’ that Schematic Medium aims for. <Platform1> rearranges past series into a comprehensive spatial schema, constructing an environment where the viewer can intervene. At this stage, the work goes beyond an object of contemplation to function as a ‘Field of Relational Event’ where space and humans interact and meaning is reconstructed at every moment, opening up the possibility for the system to extend into even more complex dimensions.

Ultimately, Schematic Medium transforms the artwork from a ‘beautiful object to be appreciated’ into a ‘Worlding that operates and generates.’ My work does not follow closed laws but is a ‘Performative Generative Structure’ where an imperfect human breathes with the world through the tool of Schema, dimensionally expanding the aesthetic order derived from that process. This exists as a Meta-Praxis, where rational thought and physical practice interact to restructure the world anew.

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