Conversations with Eunbi Kang

Today we’d like to introduce you to Eunbi Kang.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My story starts from the moment I grabbed a pencil and paper. However, it has been about five years since I started taking it seriously as a career path. In high school, my classmates studied so hard to find their own path, but I was unmotivated and depressed at that time. I did not have a dream and the study I had to do in my high school was very difficult. I still liked art at that time but never considered it as a career path. I also heard that it was too late to start studying art in Korea, the country where I was born when I had just entered high school. At that time, my mom suggested I try to pursue art in the US. I thought it would be a good idea to do something I like in another country rather than wasting time in high school and being unable to focus on my studies. After much consideration, I dropped out of school, prepared a portfolio, and entered Art Center. I believe that is the biggest and craziest decision I’ve ever made, but I also think it is the best one I’ve made in my life.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
There were a lot of really talented artists at the Art Center, but I thought I didn’t have the level of skill I needed. In class, I needed to hang my homework on the wall to get critiques, but that time was really tough. There was a time when I skipped class because I thought everyone would criticize and hate my work. Later, COVID started and I decided to go back to Korea to take a break. There, I had my own time for the first time after entering Art Center. During this time, I learned not to compare myself to others anymore, and to draw what I like, not just illustrations for my portfolio or homework. I drew various European buildings of diverse colors and only focused on what I liked. I realized once again that the reason I started art was because I enjoyed creating art. Now whenever I feel I am not good enough, I remind myself that I chose to pursue art because I like it and not because I want or need to be better than others.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I majored in Illustration with a focus in Entertainment at Art Center College, and now I think of myself as a visual development artist. I have been doing a lot of design related to animation. I’ve made designs to be used in animation, like props, backgrounds, and characters, and among the things that I’ve made so far, I’ve heard my strength is how I use colors. I am also happiest when I am deciding on what colors to use when creating an illustration. I like to use different colors depending on the weather, the time of day, or the mood of the story. When I finish coloring the sketches, I feel proud that the illustration I made looked like a scene from an animation.

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
I would like to tell beginners to try to enjoy art without comparing yourself to others. You think it’s too easy? In my experience, there is nothing more difficult than this. I believe that if you enjoy something that you are passionate about, you will be good at it in the end. A person who also enjoys it can reach the top faster than a person who just only works hard. I hope that young artists reading this article always remember that they started because they love art.

I want to add that it is important to be patient and to follow your own path. No one is good at anything from the start. A skilled artist with 20 years of experience and a person who has just started are obviously different in their skills. I hope you don’t compare your skills with others, but compare yourself from yesterday and slowly move forward one step at a time.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.eunbikang.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ekang9/