This exhibition presents my artistic viewpoints on the environmental and human rights issues that lead to forced migration. The artwork features life-size, free-standing figures positioned throughout the exhibition space to convey movement, strategically utilizing wall space to enhance the sense of a journey. The pieces are crafted from diverse materials, ranging from repurposed items to cement and seashells, signifying the ways in which marginalized peoples must cobble together lives on the fringes of society, with whatever can be found along the way to create a sense of home and security.
Through this installation, I aim to encourage the audience to reflect on their own identities while engaging with the sculptures. By interacting with these figures, viewers can gain a deeper understanding of their place in society and the broader human experience.
Initially, viewers might struggle to identify the figures and their motivations. However, a closer examination reveals that these individuals have undertaken arduous journeys. The sculptures’ materiality and physical condition, marked by signs of strain and toil, suggest the harsh conditions compelling people to seek better lives.
These figures are survivors exhibiting remarkable resilience as they endure displacement, armed conflict, and starvation, yet they persevere with a fierce determination to secure a better future for themselves and their children. Their journey is fraught with hardships, including anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and depression, but through sheer resilience and resourcefulness, they navigate the complexities of life in a new country.
This work serves as a powerful piece of activism, highlighting the profound impact of displacement. It portrays a collective effort and how people can come together to navigate the challenges of integrating into a new society. By depicting their struggles and triumphs, this artwork serves as a poignant reminder of the strength inherent within marginalized communities, inspiring empathy and understanding in today’s world.
Seongmin Yoo is a Korean-born visual, conceptual, and installation artist who now lives in America. Known for her inventive use of space and materials, her body of work involves collage, painting, and assemblage, relying upon a variety of materials found in nature. Daughter to the great Korean haiku poet, Boon Ok Han, Yoo shows a predilection for integrating poetic imagery into her various mediums. Her Korean heritage remains as a driving force in her art, and her combinations of traditional techniques allow her to organically fuse her interests.
Following a challenging path towards citizenship in the United States, she has continually addressed the difficulties of immigration and how her East and West identities meld or collide. Her continual exploration of mediums is a hallmark of her career. She is an artist who avoids labels as a painter or sculptor; she does it all. Her bold choice to relocate to the United States continues to be a pervasive theme within her work. Over the years, Yoo has expanded her creative processes to also include performance art and installation art as additional ways to capture the extremities of her emotions and experiences as a woman, mother, immigrant, and human being. Her artwork can best be understood as a powerful survey of various power imbalances, whether they be environmental, political, social, or gendered.
Today, Yoo lives and works in Northern California, where she has absorbed the significant traditions that flourished in the region. In completing her MFA at UC Davis, she developed a series entitled Journey of Displacement, featuring life-size sculptures composed of various natural materials. In continuing to develop the imagery of these sculptures in her current work, she further explores the themes of humanity’s endeavor to control nature and how this concept extends also to human life. In crafting these alien-like beings, she highlights the emotional turbulence of being alienated in the modern world. Through addressing the fraught state of the world, Yoo finds empowerment by channeling her artistic creativity. Her work is both deeply personal, reflecting her own difficult journey, while also representing the struggles of those who face similar challenges. Most importantly, she builds bridges and offers her artwork to viewers as an opportunity to work through their own personal and universal struggles.
Museum Hours:
Tuesday – Saturday:
10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Sunday:
12 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Closed Monday
Committed to showcasing legacy, established and emerging artists, we aim to be a vibrant hub that celebrates the power of art, in all its forms and expressions, to transform lives.
Love what we do? Consider donating!
