Finally grasping his identity as a photographer

KT Kim initially drew attention as a photographer at home and abroad with a series of photos of street cats. Then, he went on to cause a sensation with his candid fashion photographs, which had never been attempted before in Korea. We went to his studio in Nonhyeon-dong, Seoul to meet the famed fashion photographer, who is also the mastermind behind On the Liszt. There, he led Kang Yena into the fascinating world of photography, showing his photography works as well as camera equipment. After working as TV commercial model in his early 20s, he successfully made a career transition into a DJ, working worldwide. Then, with a sudden urge to work in the daylight hours just like everyone else and the inspiration he gained from Michael Kenna’s photography works, he decided to enter the path of photography at the age of 31. After gradually climbing up the ladder in the world of photography, the self-taught photographer worked with top celebrities from various sectors including Kim Hee-seon as well as Karl Lagerfeld, the creative director of Chanel. He suffered the biggest crisis in his life when he was diagnosed with Stage II kidney cancer in 2005, but that did not stop him from pursuing his passion in life and he opened the second chapter in his life in 2011 as the art director of Fashion 4 Development, an organization that had been founded with the support of UN. KT Kim has been relentlessly trying to create his own world of photography, while communicating with the public at the same time using his talent. Meet the celebrated fashion photographer on The INNERview this week!