Debris by Changil Kim
While a student in the Rinehart School of Sculpture MFA program at Maryland Institute College of Art in 2023, Changil Kim interviewed two Korean American women living in Towson and created a ceramic work titled Debris to share their stories. Below is an image of Debris and his description of the work.
This work is based on interviews with two Korean senior women living in Towson. The pottery symbolizes their Korean homeland, which they left in the 1970s. The cracks and broken pieces of the pottery represent the various disappointments and hardships they faced upon arriving in the United States, while the waves flowing out of the jars represent their acceptance, adaptation and prosperity in their new lives in the United States.
Both women came to the Baltimore area at the urging of relatives. One sacrificed a wealthy lifestyle in Korea to support her husband’s pursuit of his career dreams. Over time, she bought and managed shops selling wigs, men’s clothing and miscellaneous goods. The other woman worked in a local factory and eventually ran her own store as well. Both women reflected on their journeys and stated that they are happy to have moved to the U.S. from Korea, citing freedom of expression as well as educational opportunities and successful lives for their children as the most satisfying outcomes.
About the Researcher: Changil Kim
ChangiI Kim is an artist from South Korea. He earned a bachelor’s degree in fine art sculpture from Dong-A University in South Korea in 2019. It was there that he became interested in how to transform the two-dimensional into the three-dimensional and continued to explore that in his own way. Using line materials such as wire, he still continues to work on the concept of transformation between two-dimensional drawings and three-dimensional form. He graduated from the Rinehart School of Sculpture MFA program at Maryland Institute College of Art in May 2023 and participated in the Joshua Tree Highlands Artist Residency in June 2023.