Kim was born in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan, while his father worked on, most likely managed, the construction of an airfield for the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force near Nagoya.
[1] In the winter of 1944, Kim and his family fled Japan to Korea, traveling to his father's hometown, Angang near Gyeongju City in North Gyeongsang Province.
[5]: 251 Members were mostly alumni of the Seoul National University's College of Fine Arts, such as Hee Ja Park (1946-), Bukang Yu (1943–), Jagyong Lee (1943–), Myunghi Cha (1947–), and Dongchul Ha (1942–2006).
Kim showed a large painting titled Self-Portrait (1968), depicting five headless and limbless torsos, each connected to a different culture.
"[7]: 59–62 Members included artists such as Hoon Kwak, Seung-Won Suh (1942–), Myoungyoung Choi (1941–), and Chong Hyun Ha (1935–).
The third and final letter contained a message from both artists that said, “You enjoyed the relics of mass media one day ago (귀하는 매스미디어의 유물을 1일 전에 감상하셨습니다).”[4]: 100–104 The work is considered Korea's first example of mail art, but also an important example of performance art, relying upon not only the actions executed by the artists but also its participating audiences.
[4]: 100–104 Kim wrote that Relics of Mass Media was an experimentation incorporating a social machine as an attempt to widen the parameters of a collaborative act of art.
[4]: 115–118 In 1974, Kim received a fellowship from the Rockefeller Foundation, which allowed him to relocate to New York City and study at Pratt Institute.