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I’m a second-generation child of Korean immigrants who grew up mostly outside of Korea. Though I was fortunate to spend enough time there to get a basic grasp of the language, I didn’t know much about the motherland.

In high school, I began having questions about where I came from. I wanted to be an artist, and felt a need to be rooted in a culture I could represent.

That curiosity grew into something of an identity crisis in my twenties. So I went looking for answers. I backpacked through East Asia. Moved to Korea. Studied the language. Explored the history. All to fill in the parts of my identity that I felt had been missing.

As I’ve met Koreans from across the diaspora, it’s become clear that this journey is universal. Koreans outside of Korea grow up at a distance from our heritage, in different ways, to varying degrees. What we share is an experience of Koreanness from the outside and a desire to connect with it more deeply.

I want to make that more accessible and fun through my art ~ and in doing so, create something new: a global Korean identity that belongs to us all.

History chose Korea to bear the divisions of the modern world. I believe that as Koreans, we have the opportunity to heal them by loving and celebrating each other.