VOL.77/2024.12

 

Writer Park Hyun-Min

Picture books that help children grow with their “materiality”

 

2024.11.04

 

A firm belief in “picture books that make the world a better place” has been the foundation for the pursuit of diversity in his works. Picture book writer-illustrator Park Hyun-Min makes picture books by embracing different perspectives and building his own artistic world with a fresh approach. With his focus on the materiality of books, Park gives room to readers through the white spaces, and expands the diversity of picture books. He says he wants children to develop good feelings about picture books as they read them. That’s why Park’s picture books sparkle and shine, as he spreads the positive impact of picture books.

 

 

It’s an honor to have you with us on K-Book Trends. Please say hello to our readers along with a brief introduction of yourself.

 

Hello, everyone. I’m Park Hyun-Min. It’s a pleasure to be meeting you all through this interview. I mostly work on picture books.

 

Congratulations on winning the 2024 Korea Picture Book Award with How To Be A True Friend (Changbi Publishers)! Could you please tell us about the book and how you feel about winning the award?

 

How To Be A True Friend is a fictitious story about a Yeti Institute in the Himalayas that tells a humorous but heartwarming story about nature and relationships between groups or individuals that have different beliefs. As with all of my books, this one is somewhat atypical - so I was very surprised when I first heard about the award. Instead of feeling like an achievement for a picture book, it felt like recognition and support for the many different attempts I have been making over the years.

 

* K-Book Trends Vol. 76 – Go to the article about the 2024 Korea Picture Book Award

 

 

What made you decide to become a picture book writer-illustrator after majoring in structural engineering? Also, are there aspects in which the major helps you write picture books?

 

There was no special reason for becoming a picture book writer-illustrator - I just wanted to write them because I liked pictures, stories, and books. I did not have a long-term plan in the beginning; I think it’s luck that I could keep writing picture books until today. I try to stay humble and do my best everyday, because writing picture books is not something that can be done only with your will.
I don’t think what you have majored in matters that much because the picture book industry is a comprehensive field. Majors play an important role in developing one’s identity for sure, but there are people that have their identity established before choosing one. I think any kind of experience helps, because it is reflected into the books in some heartfelt way.

 

You have had a brilliant career both at home and abroad, winning the Bologna Ragazzi Award Opera Prima - Special Mention in 2021 for your first picture book, So Much Snow (Dalgrimm), being selected as the “Illustrator of the Year” at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in 2022 with City Flight (Changbi Publishers), and being nominated for the recommended Korean selection at the Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava (BIB) in 2023 with Finding the Light (Dalgrimm). What do you think is the driving force behind your public acclaim and global recognition?

 

It’s always a challenge to decide which book to make because there are already so many great books out there. I think they gave high marks for trying to actively utilize the materiality of the book as a medium, and for trying to show diversity within the limited world of commercial publishing.

 

 

You tend to leave white spaces for readers to fill in with their imagination, just like in the book Finding the Light. What role do you think such elements play in picture books, and is there any message that you intend to deliver through white spaces?

 

White space is one of the key elements in all my books. It emphasizes the relationship between elements and highlights the materials that compose the physicality of books. The reason why we can understand the whole thing even if we only see part of it in pictures is because of the frame we have. We all see the world through a limited frame. I like to see readers recognize this frame and deconstruct it. Another reason I like to use white space is because readers can enrich it by filling it with their own experiences. In the book Finding the Light, I designed the city at night with only glass windows. Here, I tried to deliver a message about modern civilization, describing glass windows as an illusion with no real structural function. Inside them, we are lost and wandering, and when the sun rises in the morning, we will see which parts are rigid realities.

 

It seems that works like So Much Snow and City Flight show your unique, diverse perspectives and your affection towards the world. How are they reflected in the stories?

 

When I brainstorm a picture book, I try to look at things familiar from a slightly different perspective. Because humans are predominantly visual thinkers, picture books are a powerful tool for understanding other perspectives. In So Much Snow, I focused on the process of expanding our visual frame by showing scales that are unfamiliar to us. And, in City Flight, I drew the world from a dandelion’s point of view by watching children plucking dandelions to blow their seeds, putting myself in the dandelion’s shoes. That’s why I wrote in the book, “If you can see the world through someone else’s eyes, it means you can love them.”

 

 

You have said that you want children to find books as something “just fun,” and that you write books because you want them to see and understand the world from different perspectives. So, what books do you usually read to broaden your perspective and to find fun?

 

I believe that books make the world a better place. The idea is that while it’s important to convey a certain message to children, it’s also important to make them feel good about books, feeling that they are valuable, when they are shaping their values. I also think that picture books are a great tool for children to understand things from different perspectives as they are a visual medium.
I usually read many books regardless of their genres - I especially like science books, brain science, evolutionary biology, and particle physics, in particular. It’s because they teach us where we came from and where we are stuck.

 

Your books have been translated and published in various countries around the world. Are there any countries you would like to see your books published in that haven’t yet?

 

Although I had the pleasure of having a connection with the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, I was kind of sad that my book was never published in Italy. I would love to have my books published in every country, of course, because not many of them have been published abroad yet. However, because picture books are generally viewed as a children’s category, they tend to be conservative and it’s difficult for diverse books to be published. My books are particularly tricky to produce, as they use spot colors. Still, I like to make changes to suit each country’s preferences and production environment. Since publishing is a mass medium, I consider it important to find a middle ground to communicate with readers. I also think it’s important to have the publisher’s identity reflected in the production, as it’s not just the author’s work alone.

 

 

 

I want to expand the diversity within the book
and show the materiality that only books can have.

 

 

Many Korean picture books, including yours, have been receiving international acclaim these days. What do you think are the distinctive features or competitiveness of Korean picture books?

 

One foreign publisher I met with said that Korean picture books have a unique lyrical and special sensitivity. While many people talk about detailed emotional expressions and other characteristics, I think the biggest strength is diversity. Korea still has a strong printing industry and a wide readership for picture books, which is why there are so many different themes and styles of picture books being published. I expect many more good books to come out in the future.

 

It has been 5 years since you made your debut as a picture book writer-illustrator. You have become one of Korea’s leading picture book writer-illustrators with your creative energy, so now what are your plans and goals for the future?

 

I have been working on highlighting things that the commercial publishing industry doesn’t often try or value. While not forgetting that books are a medium that can communicate with a large number of readers, I would like to expand the diversity within it and demonstrate the qualities that only books can have. So, I am actively planning a variety of work that is not limited to genres or categories. At times, I have doubts that I am doing something that is neither this nor that, but I think that is my role - and I will continue to push forward. I look forward to your continued support.

 

 

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