A quiet and delicate picture book prepared over three years

As if performing slow yoga movements, author Lee Yoon-joo calmly built this book over three years.
What started as a small seed of work on a yoga art book has, over time, expanded into the question, “What does yoga mean to me?”
To find the answer, the artist experimented with various materials and went through numerous practice works, refining each image with quiet breathing.

I spent a lot of time choosing the paper because I wanted to convey the feeling of the original painting.
Because I hoped that even the sensation of turning the pages would become an extension of reading.
The completed 『Staying in an Empty Space』 is a delicate art book that fully captures the emotions and breath the author has held onto for a long time.

A journey to fill your empty mind through yoga

This book depicts a character's journey of rebuilding her day through yoga. To ensure that her time alone doesn't feel empty, the author lingers on each yoga pose, slowly filling the void.
For the author, the 'empty yoga mat' was not an empty space, but rather a place where she could finally stay and be filled.

As I turn the pages of the book, I experience the rhythm of my mind gradually becoming more organized, like the moment when I take a deep breath in and out in yoga.
"Staying in an Empty Space" shows, through soft colors and margins, the process of an empty heart slowly transforming into a place of recovery.

Author Interview

Q.
How did this book begin?

"Staying in the Empty Space" evolved from the yoga art book project I completed during the 2022 PaTI illustration course. While my previous work focused on visually representing yoga movements, this book explores what yoga has meant to me, and is structured to convey the flow of time.

Q.
What does the author think the ‘empty space’ is?

To me, empty space means any space where I stay alone.
I had a habit of obsessively organizing and cleaning, which made my house look incredibly empty when I was alone.
The emptiness of that space and the emptiness of my heart overlapped, and for a while, the empty space had a negative connotation. However, as I gradually accepted the time alone, I discovered a positive empty space.
Among them, there is an empty yoga mat.
If the home I was living in was an empty space where I felt like I would disappear, then the empty yoga mat I use is a space where I can feel safe and fulfilled only when I stay on it.

Q.
What kind of mind is it to ‘stay in an empty space’?

The tenacity to want to live well, and the peace of mind to sleep soundly.
I think those two minds are together.

Q.
What do you want to express through yoga?

Six years ago, on my way back from a class at Jeju Seonheul Yoga Center, the reeds of a dark field passed by outside my car window.
In that darkness, I suddenly felt that the world was very beautiful.
What I want to express through yoga is precisely that feeling. That moment when your sweat-soaked body cools and you feel lethargic, and even though the world is unclear, it somehow feels beautiful.

Q.
Is there any good music to listen to while reading this book?

I don't really listen to music when I'm drawing, but during this project I often listened to Asaf Sagiv's 'Od Daka Ve Nochtim'.

Q.
How do you hope this book will reach readers?

I hope this book can be read at a slow pace, naturally bringing you a sense of calm.