KIM Insook was born in Osaka, Japan, and moved to Korea in 2003. She is currently based between Tokyo and Seoul.
Since 2001, she has developed projects grounded in long-term engagement with communities, focusing on person-to-person relationships that emerge within daily life, memory, history, tradition, community, and family.
She regards the processes of encounters and collaboration that unfold through each project as the artwork itself, and primarily creates installations composed of photographs, videos, objects, and sound.
She has held several solo exhibitions, including sweet hours (Gwangju Museum of Art, Gwangju, 2008), SAIESEO: Between Two Koreas and Japan (Gallery ILLUM, Seoul, 2008), Between Breads and Noodles (BMW Photo Space, Busan, 2018), House to Home (Tokyo Arts and Space Hongo, Tokyo, 2021), and Eye to Eye, Side: C (Sony Imaging Gallery, Tokyo, 2024).
She has also participated in numerous group exhibitions, such as the Daegu Photo Biennale (2014), Go-Betweens: The World Seen through Children (Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, 2014), Family Report (Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art, Ansan, 2017), I know something about love, asian contemporary photography (Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, Tokyo, 2018), and Where My Words Belong (Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Tokyo, 2024).
She has received several awards, including the Yebisu International Festival for Art & Alternative Visions 2023 – Commission Project Special Award, the 48th Kimura Ihei Photography Award, and the 75th Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists in Fine Arts (Type B).
Her works are included in the collections of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea; Seoul Museum of Art; Gwangju Museum of Art; Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art; and Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, among others.
2024
48th Kimura Ihei Photography Award Winning Work Exhibition
Eye to Eye, Side: C
Sony Imaging Gallery, Tokyo, JP
2023
Art Talk with KIM Insook –
House to Home, 2023
Space 17717, Seoul, KR
2023
Between Breads and Noodles
GALLERY MoMo Ryogoku, Tokyo, JP
2021
Ari, A Letter from Seongbuk-dong
GALLERY MoMo Projects, Tokyo, JP
2021
House to Home (OPEN SITE 6)
Tokyo Arts and Space Hongo, Tokyo, JP
2018
Between Breads and Noodles
BMW Photo Space, Busan, KR
2015
House to Home
CAN (Contemporary Art Network) Foundation, Old House, Seoul, KR
2014
Retelling Tales of the Cherry Blossoms
MIO Photo Award Prime, Tennoji MIO, Osaka, JP
2013
Retelling Tales of the Cherry Blossoms
Canonplex Gallery, Seoul, KR
2008
SAIESEO: Between Two Koreas and Japan
Gallery ILLUM, Seoul, KR
2008
sweet hours
Gwangju Museum of Art, Gwangju, KR
2005
sweet hours
Art Space HUE, Seoul, KR
2004
Letter to You
STUDIO EARKA, Osaka, JP
2002
Chang – 窓 window, 唱 song, 蒼 blue –
Konica FOTO PREMIO, Shinjuku Konica Plaza, Tokyo, JP
2002
Chang
Beats Gallery, Osaka, JP
2026
Road movie: Art between Korea and Japan since 1945
National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, Gwacheon, KR
2026
What Flows, What Remains
Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art, Ansan, KR
2025–2026
Art between Japan and Korea since 1945
Yokohama Museum of Art, Yokohama, JP
2025–2026
Roppongi Crossing 2025:
What Passes Is Time. We Are Eternal.
Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, JP
2025
Who Is Your Family?
Jeju National University Museum, Jeju;
Kyungpook National University Museum, Daegu;
Gunsan National University Museum, Gunsan, KR
2025
Knots Art Festival at Colégio Sant’Ana
Colégio Sant’Ana, Shiga, JP
2024
Where My Words Belong
Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Tokyo, JP
2024
Yebisu International Festival for Art & Alternative Visions 2024 –
Commission Project 2023 Special Award Winners Exhibition
Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, Tokyo, JP
2023
Yebisu International Festival for Art & Alternative Visions 2023 –
Commission Project
Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, Tokyo, JP
2021
7.9 Billion Others –
For Every “I” Living on This Planet
Borderless Art Museum NO-MA, Omihachiman, JP
2021
A Man Sowing Seeds: 2012–2018 Ha Jungwoong Collection
Gwangju Museum of Art, Gwangju, KR
2020
Listen to Her Song
The Chinretsukan Gallery, Tokyo University of the Arts, Tokyo, JP
2018
I know something about love, asian contemporary photography
Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, Tokyo, JP
2018
AS_pedia Project Vol. 2:
A Tale from Korea and Japan
Institute of East Asian Studies (IN-EAST),
University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg, DE
2017
Family Report
Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art, Ansan, KR
2016–2017
16th Ha Jungwoong Young Artists
Invitation Exhibition – Light 2016
Gwangju Museum of Art, Gwangju, KR
2015–2016
EAST ASIAN VIDEO FRAME Seoul
Pori Art Museum, Pori, FI
2015–2016
Séoul, vite, vite!
Le Tripostal, Lille, FR
2014–2015
Go-Betweens: The World Seen through Children
Mori Art Museum, Tokyo;
Nagoya City Art Museum, Nagoya;
Okinawa Prefectural Museum & Art Museum, Naha;
The Museum of Art, Kochi, Kochi, JP
2015
Seoul Photo Festival – A Great Journey
Buk-Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, KR
2014
Daegu Photo Biennale – Encounter III
Daegu, KR
2014
Five Views from Korea
Noorderlicht House of Photography, Groningen, NL
2013
SOCIAL ART
Daejeon Museum of Art, Daejeon, KR
2013
12th Donggang International Photo Festival – Youth Collection
DongGang Museum of Photography, Yeongwol, KR
2013
The National Network of Municipal Art Museums “Art of Prayers” –
Special Exhibition of the Ha Jung-woong Collection
Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul;
Gwangju Museum of Art, Gwangju, KR
2012
Hong Kong International Photo Festival –
Parallel Visions: Japan and Korea
Contemporary Photography Exhibition
Pao’s Galleries, Hong Kong Arts Centre, Hong Kong, HK
2011
Seoul Photo Festival Special Exhibition II –
Photo Review Finalists Exhibition
Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, KR
2009
Art in Busan 2009: Inter-City
Busan Museum of Art, Busan, KR
2006
16th Festival Month of Photography 2006 FOTOFO –
Contemporary Korean Photography: Korea New Days
Bratislava, SK
2005
Seoul Exhibition of Young Artists
Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, KR
2004
6th Sajin Bipyong (Photography Criticism) Award Winners Exhibition
Daelim Contemporary Art Museum, Seoul, KR
2003
The Month of Photography, Tokyo 2003 –
IN & OUT
Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography
(now Tokyo Photographic Art Museum), Tokyo, JP
2025
75th Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists in Fine Arts (Type B)
JP
2024
48th Kimura Ihei Photography Award
JP
2023
Yebisu International Festival for Art & Alternative Visions 2023 –
Commission Project Special Award
Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, Tokyo, JP
2014
Korean Artist Project (KAP) 2014, Selected Artist
The Korean Art Museum Association, Seoul, KR
2013
MIO Photo Award Prime
Selected by Kasahara Michiko, JP
2004
6th Sajin Bipyong (Photography Criticism) Award, Excellence Award
Seoul, KR
2002
Konica FOTO PREMIO, Selected Artist
JP
2025
SeMA Nanji Residency
Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA), Seoul, KR
2015
Old House Project Residency
CAN Foundation, Seoul, KR
2014–2015
MMCA Residency Goyang
National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA), Goyang, KR
2014
Residency Studio by the Cultural Office
of the City of Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf, DE
2013
MMCA Residency Changdong – Community Art Project
National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA), Seoul, KR
2024
Beyond the Door: Shiga and Art for You and Me
Sant’Ana School ART Project with KIM Insook
2021
Two Projects in Seongbuk-dong
2005
sweet hours
National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea
Seoul Museum of Art
Goeun Museum of Photography
Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art
Tokyo Photographic Art Museum
Gwangju Museum of Art
CAN (Contemporary Art Network) Foundation
Ha Jung-woong Collection, Gwangju Museum of Art
Full CV available upon request.