Kim Jung Gi passed away suddenly this past Monday. He was on his way to a convention, like he did so often.
We’re at a true loss for words on what exactly to say about such an incredible artist and friend to so many. But suffice it to say, he made an impact on a tremendous amount of lives, either directly or indirectly. If you’d like to share a personal thought or memory about Jung Gi, please do so in the comments.
In the mean time, here are pictures and videos to help us all remember this remarkable man.
Kim Jung Gi (1975-2022)
I’m very shocked by the death of the Master. He was so unreachable that he looked like some kind of divinity. One thing is certain, there will be a before and after Kim Jung Gi, he is a milestone in Art, has defined new boundaries for drawing.
RIP Master
Completely shocked. A genius, a mentor, friend to many in the community. Kim Jung Gi truly had super powers and we are all blessed to have witnessed such greatness in our lifetime. My heart felt condolences go out to his family, team, friends and fellow artists. He’ll continue to inspire artists forever.
A legend.
Rest in Peace Kim Jung Gi.
Life is unpredictable so do what you can now, He has certainly left a huge legacy of art and inspired so many artists.
I remember the first time a bunch of us stumbled across one of his giant drawing videos, and we were all gobsmacked. No one had ever seen anything like it before. Lots of speculation about ‘how he did it’, and if it was legit or not. And then Jung Gi proceeded to just keep doing it, and doing it, and left everyone humbled and in awe. He went from relatively unknown in the Americas, to an absolute LEGEND in under 10 years. It was such a fast, but brilliant career. When I look back on it, I feel like we all caught a glimpse of a shooting star.
To say I’m deviated by his loss is an understatement. I was just thinking about how much of a national treasure he is and to see him gone so young is nothing short of a travesty. I looked up to him for a majority of my development and for many years he was the only artist I ever thought about, he was always on my mind. Looking at him felt like he was the only artist to ever watch, he could do anything and every page of his sketchbook felt like a life changing event. He gave me so much hope and inspiration and in many ways I wouldn’t be here today without him. He broke so many rules I saw others harp on but to him, No refs, no prep no pencil? NO problem! His process was nothing short of insane, where he’d start at the details of a boot, a background prop, then draw the rest of the figure. From what he did to how he did it was an absolute inspiration, if not recorded, I doubt many would even believe a feat was possible.
He also somehow never let his fame get to him, he was always humble and very funny. He could’ve very easily drew and silently went back to his work and let the rest of us wonder. He could’ve easily kept his secrets to himself and stayed a modern day myth. The fact that he was kind enough to let us have a glimpse of how he was thinking, was both an artist and teacher at heart and was so generous with his time and advice is a treasure. The wisdom he passed on is something I’ll always remember. I’m so glad he got the fame he deserved but sad he didn’t get to experience it long enough. I always dreamed of meeting him one day to tell him how much he changed my life and ask him questions I didn’t see others ask. I feel like we just lost a genius before he got to tell us everything. We lost a treasure, we lost a hero, we lost Kim jung gi. I just can’t believe it. My heart is broken.
it is debatable to say that any artist is the best artist in any given time. but what we can say about him is that he was the best performer of all artist. Im quite sure that despite his gimmick relly on making his work look effortless he probably worked harder than most of us. but that being said. no one needs to work as hard as he did. dude died of a heart attack before his 50s, now maybe tomorrow someone will explain that he had a congenital heart disease. but after Miura, I wouldnt be surprised overworking and maybe a bad sleeping schedule could have something to do. please all you cool artist, sleep 8 hours a day, dont regularly work over 8 hours, and get regular check ups. ):
How sad that such a fantastic artist as Kim Jung Gi died so early. He worked really hard at his craft, definitely far more than the “10,000 hours”. Still, how do we explain his drawing ability that was beyond anyone else on the planet, except by being blessed with super-human talent? Clearly he was a genius.