韓國人氣插畫師TREE13（나무13）的插畫作品，總讓人聯想到清澈颯爽的夏天和浪漫復古的都市。 他描繪夏夜與都市，海灘與汽水，繽紛絢麗的色彩，還有甜美青春的少女，這樣元素眾多的多彩世界，重現了原本只留存於日本昭和末年的夢幻時光。 TREE13長久以來自學繪畫，幾年前機緣巧合走上職業插畫師的道路，曾與知名City Pop音樂風格的音樂人Night Tempo多次合作，為其繪製專輯封面，引領了復古懷舊浪潮的復興。
Tree13 is an illustrator living in Korea. The artwork of TREE13 always evokes images of clear, refreshing summers and romantically vintage cities. He paints summer nights and cities, beaches and soda, a riot of dazzling colors, and sweet, youthful girls. He is influenced by Korean subculture and Japanese animation from the 80s/90s which lead him to create album cover such as for Korean based DJ Vaporwave DJ ‘Night tempo’. Tree13 collaborates with various global companies dealing with the fashion industry, as well as music labels.
他擅長描繪海市蜃樓般的迷幻之夏，靜譌安逸，神秘自由。 幾年前他來到首爾求職，嘗試通過繪畫來緩解對就業和未來的不確定性和壓力，他將自己對都市的幻夢投射到作品當中，描繪擁有美好質感的生活，畫下這些絢麗而空虛，充滿享樂主義的想像，讓他在就業失意期間獲得了極大安慰。 極具昭和感的復古漫畫少女，讓他迅速獲得粉絲青睞，一路走紅，開始走上商業插畫師的職業道路。
He excels in portraying a mirage-like, enchanting summer, tranquil and comfortable, mysterious and free. A few years ago, he moved to Seoul to find work, attempting to alleviate the uncertainty and pressure of employment and the future through his artwork. He projected his urban dreams onto his work, depicting a life of beautiful quality. His illustrations, radiant yet hollow, full of hedonistic imagination, brought him great comfort during his time of job hunting disappointment. The retro comic girls, reminiscent of the Showa era, quickly won him fan favor. His popularity soared, and he began his career as a commercial illustrator.
TREE13的創作靈感來源於日本80、90年代的動漫，尤其是安達充的動漫《H2》和《Touch》，給了他很大啟發。 一次，他在電視上偶然看到扳機社TRIGGER製作的動畫《Kill la Kill》（《斬服少女》），張力十足的畫面、時尚新穎的字幕演出，讓TREE13深感震撼，也讓他心裡產生了一股強烈的創作衝動。 “我開始對一些所謂復古的東西產生了強烈的懷念，比如小時候看的日本動畫片、舊雜誌、復古音樂、電子遊戲、可愛的包裝。”
TREE13’s creative inspiration comes from Japanese anime of the 80s and 90s, particularly Mitsuru Adachi’s ‘H2’ and ‘Touch’, which greatly inspired him. Once, he accidentally came across the animation ‘Kill la Kill’ produced by TRIGGER on television. The intense scenes and innovative subtitle performances deeply shocked TREE13, and stirred a strong creative impulse within him. ‘I began to feel a strong nostalgia for some so-called retro things, such as the Japanese cartoons I watched as a child, old magazines, retro music, video games, and cute packaging.’
與山下達郎等City Pop藝術前輩不同 ，TREE13的畫里並沒有太多汽車、廣告霓虹、都市建築等標配元素。 更多的，是挖掘女性角色里豐富多彩、酷的東西和古怪的視覺元素，她們被猶如糖果般的色彩包圍著，散發著獨特魅力。 “她們的比如衣服、飾品、妝容等，都可以給我很大的想像空間。”
“Unlike predecessors in the City Pop art scene such as Tatsuro Yamashita, TREE13’s paintings do not contain many standard elements such as cars, neon advertisements, or urban architecture. Instead, he delves more into the colorful, cool aspects and quirky visual elements found in female characters. They are surrounded by candy-like colors, radiating a unique charm. ‘Their clothes, accessories, makeup, and so on, can all provide me with a great deal of imaginative space,’ he says.
作品中對比強烈的顏色，再加上對細節與裝飾的深入刻畫，塑造了輕鬆歡快的氛圍與復古迷人的氣質。 對於許多人來說，TREE13鮮豔復古、賞心悅目的畫風，就是新世代City Pop美學的標誌。
The strong color contrasts in his works, coupled with the detailed depictions of details and decorations, create a relaxed, cheerful atmosphere and retro charm. For many, TREE13’s vibrant, retro, and visually pleasing style is a hallmark of the new generation’s City Pop aesthetic.
例如TREE13為韓國燒酒品牌創作的插畫系列，鮮花味道的燒酒，用淡雅的女子形象以及復古紅的鮮花為主題。 橘子味的燒酒則用帶草帽的少女和三個橘子作為主體畫面，清爽，草帽讓人有種炎炎夏日的感覺，讓人聯想到橘子味的夏天。
For instance, the illustration series TREE13 created for a South Korean soju brand featured a demure female figure and retro-red flowers to represent the floral-flavored soju. For the orange-flavored soju, he used a straw-hatted girl and three oranges as the main subjects, giving a refreshing feel and evoking a blazing summer day, reminiscent of an orange-scented summer.
“我覺得我的作品不像現代藝術那樣深刻，缺乏深度。” 因此，他開始留意觀察人的的細微感情，並把這些靈感融入到他的作品中。
‘I feel that my work is not as profound as modern art, lacking depth,’ he says. As such, he began to pay attention to the subtle emotions of people and incorporate these inspirations into his work.
透過TREE13輕快、復古的繪畫，我們可以看到一個充滿精緻浪漫氛圍的美麗都市。 他對繪畫的純粹渴望提醒我們，如果你找到自己喜歡並且想堅持的事情，享受這個過程，真正投入，終究會有意想不到的回報。
Through TREE13’s lively, retro-style paintings, we can see a beautiful city filled with a delicately romantic atmosphere. His pure desire for painting reminds us that if you find something you love and want to persist in, enjoy the process, truly immerse yourself in it, there will ultimately be unexpected rewards.
More about TREE13 나무13:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/__tree_13/
Photo courtesy of the artist TREE13 나무13