Yoo Choongmok graduated Namseoul University in 2004 with a BFA in Environmental Art and Design (Glass). He graduated the University of Sunderland in 2013 with an MA (distinction) in Visual Practice (Glass). He completed his PhD studies in IT Fusion Design at the Seoul National University of Science and Technology in 2016. 

Yoo Choongmok’s works are modern interpretations of Korean aesthetics from their traditional and classical forms. He works with glass as his primary material to explore the properties and potentials of the medium, expanding his body of work into new dimensions. The artist’s most recent explorations have led him to the canvas, where glass droplets have trickled on to the surface.

The artist’s works are largely inspired and informed by traditional Korean dancheong (丹靑 - multicolored paintwork on wooden structures), which follow the color scheme of obangsaek (五方色, five colors–white, black, blue, yellow, and red–that represent the five cardinal directions and the five elements of life). More specifically, the artist reinterprets the classical lines, forms, and colors from the window frames and fixtures of traditional Korean architecture into various levels of abstraction. 

The droplet-like glass objects in his works stand out against the rough (grana rossa) canvas fabric. The transparent, shimmering glass droplets absorb light from nearby sources of illumination, casting seemingly shifted shadows that achieve a variegated impression.

Yoo Choongmok believes that the shimmer can blur the boundaries between dimensional concepts, drawing its viewers into simultaneously think of the past, present, and the future. 

And much like water droplets formed by condensation in the atmosphere, the artist believes that experiences are what constitute the true self. The shimmering water droplets are his most significant source of nutriment and polestar for his identity.

The harmonious beauty of lines, planes, colors, and shimmering vitality of glass droplets painted and placed on canvas echo across dimensions and into the lasting impression of viewers.