As humble as he is talented, New Mexico artist Kang Cho is a man of few words and doesn’t like to talk about himself. Then again, he doesn’t need to; his art speaks for itself. Whether he’s painting a mountain vista, a city street, or a figure on a lonely road, his dramatic paintings engage and entice the viewer to look deeper.

Kang’s use of light and shadow, combined with expressive brushwork, creates a mood that evokes an emotional response. Sometimes contemplative, sometimes exuberant, he paints how he feels about what he sees. “I paint what excites me,” he explains.

As a child in Seoul, South Korea, Kang began his love affair with light, shadow, design, and color.

Kang Cho

Winter Wonderland
Oil
20″x14″
“Warm light on cold virgin snow—infinite, beautiful thoughts wandering around my mind.”

Kang Cho

Dressing
Oil
18″x14″
“This is a glimpse of the model getting dressed. However, placement of the model in the picture square created the variety of positive and negative shapes and color contrast.”