Park Suki began her literary career in 1995, winning the Hankook Ilbo New Year's Literary Contest. She has published numerous works, including the novels Cheerful Madness, In Search of a Kiss, The Selfish Gene, Sartre Needed Three Women, and I’m Not Ready to Go Home Yet. She has also released an art essay titled You Are an Artist. Since her first exhibition in 2014, she has held ten solo exhibitions and is active as a painter.

This book is an essay that pairs the author's paintings with explanations of how each artwork came to be, marking a new direction for an author who debuted as a novelist in 1995 through the Hankook Ilbo New Year's Literary Contest and made her debut as a painter four years ago.
The book is noteworthy for two reasons. As the author herself notes, we live in an era where art is part of everyday life. Art has long stepped out of its isolated studios and merged with our lives, meaning we are all, knowingly or unknowingly, living as artists. The author’s life exemplifies this reality. A person who had only drawn during elementary school art classes became a full-fledged painter due to a chance encounter, making her story a vivid example of the message You Are an Artist.
The second noteworthy aspect is that the author, now an active painter, provides written explanations for the background of each of her paintings. Unlike literature or music, visual art often feels difficult and obscure, partly because artists rarely discuss their work. However, the author, in contrast to traditional painters, openly explains her paintings, aiming for clear communication with viewers. Furthermore, she says the main reason she expresses her artwork in writing is to ask, "This is how I painted it, how about you?" Just as the author, once a stranger to art, became a painter one day, readers of this book may also find the courage to become artists. This is the book’s most significant message.
Author’s Note
In a time when everyone talks about the anxiety of an unpredictable future, I dare to say: we already know the future, and it is fully embedded in this moment we are living. Even a future society dominated by artificial intelligence is still a continuation of the present. The reason we are anxious is that you do not trust yourself, and I lack confidence in myself. The fact that my future is already contained within me, and your future is already stirring within you, is a reality beyond belief. We just haven't realized it yet.
The message You Are an Artist is very apt and necessary for discovering and expressing the self that I failed to notice and the self that you have ignored despite the signs. I, the author of this book, am living proof of this message.
In 1995, I debuted as a novelist through the Hankook Ilbo New Year's Literary Contest. At the time, art was an unexpected genre for me. Apart from elementary school art classes, I had never drawn before. However, in the summer of 2013, I met Kim Gwang-woo, a philosopher, art critic, and painter, which led me to start painting. At the time, Kim was planning his first exhibition to realize his campaign "Everyone is an Artist," and I participated in that exhibition. After holding a two-person exhibition with Kim at Gallery Square in January 2014, I began my journey as a painter. Four years later, I am now a painter who draws more than I write. This example vividly demonstrates that the message You Are an Artist is not an empty one, but can become a reality.
In this era, art is not a separate genre but already a way of life. We unknowingly live in art and with art. Therefore, as Kim Gwang-woo says, we are all living as artists. As someone who has proven that everyone is an artist, I reveal how each of my paintings came to be in this book, contributing to the journey of becoming an artist yourself.
Just as we have the freedom to do nothing, we also have the freedom to do anything.