Price
₩1,200,000
Art protects art
8 out of 10
artists are shut out by banks
354
loans extended to fellow artists
95%
repayment rate — trust comes full circle
~KRW 140M
interest saved vs. predatory rates
Until the next exhibition, the next performance. For artists, income gaps are an unavoidable reality. For fellow artists forced into predatory loans just to afford paint, canvas, and studio rent, proceeds from this artwork become the Seed Fund — extending a fair hand at fair rates.
Voices of fellow artists
“The memory of going hungry for three days, alone, so my children wouldn't know.”
— 50s, theater artist
“I've been putting off urgent dental treatment because I can't afford it. I should be seeing a doctor regularly, but enduring instead of going has become a habit.”
— 50s, actor
“I kept delaying ear treatment because I had no money, and the symptoms in both ears worsened.”
— 30s, musician
“I couldn't pay my hospitalized mother's bills, so we had to delay her discharge, and she had to give up tests and treatment she needed.”
— 50s, actor/broadcaster
“Because of money troubles I had nowhere to go — drifting between gosiwon rooms and rehearsal studios, and for a while sleeping rough.”
— 30s, musician
“Because of unpaid rent, my collective was forced to vacate our shared workspace and home. Neither bank loans nor artist loans could help.”
— 50s, actor
“Without money, life collapses — and creating art? Out of the question.”
— 50s, artist
“It's painful that solving this month's money problems has to come before the work itself. As an artist, I can only earn well when the work succeeds — yet I have to chase odd jobs every month instead. It feels like being trapped in a vicious cycle.”
— 40s, musician
“Debt collection calls disrupted my rehearsals and performances, and the psychological burden made every day painful and the next day frightening.”
— 40s, theater artist
“Many times the loan payments looming each month forced me to step away from performing and focus on part-time work.”
— 50s, actor
“Sleeping less than four hours a night, juggling part-time jobs and theater — but the more I performed, the more debt piled up. Eventually I decided to quit performing.”
— 30s, actor
“When things were hardest, I couldn't even attend close friends' weddings or funerals — and as a result, relationships were severed.”
— 50s, actor/broadcaster
“When I said I was a stage actor, the loan officer called me "unemployed."”
— 50s, actor
“The shame and severed friendships that came with borrowing from people I knew, the pressure of failing to pay it back, the helplessness.”
— 50s, cartoonist/visual artist
“Even with programs meant for low-income citizens, I feel shame when I can't produce enough documentation simply because I'm an artist.”
— 30s, film/broadcasting professional
One artwork becomes the oxygen that keeps a fellow artist creating.
Sales proceeds go to the artist mutual-aid fund.
Looking Back
An Eungyeong
- Category
- Painting
- Material
- Color on jangji
- Size
- 30×30cm · Size 3 · Small How big is this? →
- Year
- 2021
- Price
- ₩1,200,000
- Availability
- For sale
About the Artist
In my work, the "suitcase" is not merely a tool for carrying luggage — it symbolizes a psychological refuge that contains the anxiety and alienation of modern people while guiding them toward a new sense of self. We live on the track of a repetitive daily life, yet everyone carries at least one empty bag of their own, ready to be packed at any moment for departure. Through the imaginary spaces I construct inside suitcases, I seek to console the hardships of reality and hope that viewers can set down the weight of their everyday lives, even briefly, and experience a restorative journey toward themselves.
Artist Statement
〈Looking Back〉
This work captures the moment of suddenly stopping in the midst of moving and looking back over the time one has passed through. The figures on the canvas stand in different spaces, but they are not entirely cut off from one another. On a space floating like a small island, the figures pause and take time to look into themselves. The bright colors and lively forms appear at first glance like a light landscape, but within them memories and emotions are layered upon one another. The trees, the islands, and the drifting forms call to mind scenes that have passed by within the flow of time.
〈Looking Back〉 speaks of the time of pausing for a moment, in order to move forward, and looking back at oneself. We live within movement and change, but sometimes, in the very moment of stopping and gazing at the path we have walked, we discover the strength to walk again.
Key Career Highlights
Related materials
Magazine
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Jun 9, 2026 · Seed Art Festival
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Apr 20, 2026 · Seed Art FestivalOther works by An Eungyeong
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More Painting Artworks
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Price
₩1,200,000
Two beginnings made by one piece
- For you —
- One-of-a-kind in the world
- For the artist —
- the pride of standing with a peer
- For a fellow artist —
- a new ₩3,000,000 path of low-interest support
354 artists have walked this path of recovery; 95% returned to open it for the next.