SPOTLIGHT ON JULIA CHON: EXPLORING CULTURAL TRADITION AND GENERATIONAL IDENTITY

August 15, 2024

What role does storytelling play in your art, and how do you convey personal or cultural narratives?

I realized early on in my art practice that I needed an emotional attachment to my work in order to finish my paintings and projects that would pile up. Storytelling became a source of inspiration for and a solution to creating and completing my work. Through delving into family history, reflecting on my own journey and identity, and reading about historical events, I became invested in the work I was creating and wanted to see it finished to be able to realize and share these visions with others. My grandfather always told me to paint with joy. That regardless of the subject matter or end result, people who saw my work would be able to feel the joy and care that I poured into it.

I found that injecting personal and cultural narratives into my work gave me the most joy and purpose while art making. It's a well of inspiration for me that has never run dry.

What led you here?

I was always creative as a child, but I didn't start taking art seriously until I was 14 years old. My parents were getting divorced and I turned to painting as a sort of therapy to process my emotions and provide a routine for myself. After several months of daily art making, the thought came into my mind that I wanted to become an artist and if I went to a regular brick and mortar high school, I wouldn’t have time to practice painting and pursue my dream of making art into a career. The solution I came up with was to ask my mom to homeschool me. After lots of discussion and both of my parents approval, I ended up finding an online high school program where I spent all four years of my high school education at. Through pursuing this alternative path, I was able to practice painting everyday. By the time I was 15/16 I started showing my work locally and when I was 17, I painted my first mural. By the time that I had graduated high school, I had the beginnings of a career and decided to pursue art full-time. I didn't realize back then that a decision I would make at 14 years old would change the direction of my life forever. Now at 24, I'm incredibly grateful for trusting myself and the trust and support my family gave to me. I can’t imagine my life without art making.

I grew up very close to my mom's side of the family. My grandparents immigrated from Korea to the U.S. in 1970 bringing with them my two eldest aunts and subsequently having five more daughters. Growing up in such a large Korean American matriarchy had a huge impact on me and when I began painting I turned inward and towards my family for inspiration. The first portrait I painted was of my halmeoni. It felt natural to paint someone so close to me. While painting it I recognized the joy that I felt being able to pour my love into a piece that was so personally meaningful. As I've progressed in my career, the most fulfilling projects have always been ones that have aligned with who I am. I'm very honored to be able to connect with the Korean American community through my work.

How did Korean Archives come to life? What was the inspiration behind it?

My halmeoni collected hundreds of photos from her and my harabeoji's side of the family dating back to the early 1900s. Massive albums that I spent many days pouring over when I was a teenager. During the pandemic, I found myself going through these albums again, asking my grandparents the backstory to each snapshot. What started out as a family oral history project turned into a desire to share these photos and memories with others and to hear their stories in turn. Instagram became an easy platform to connect with the global Korean diaspora and from there, people began sharing their family history. Over the last few years of working on the Korean Archives, it has been uplifting to see how deep the collective bond we share as Koreans runs, regardless of the differences in location, upbringing, and paths that we and our families have chosen.

How do you think being a Korean American artist affects the way your work is perceived both within and outside of the Korean American community?

I recognized at an early age that Asian American art was underrepresented at an institutional level. When going to art museums, I always saw historic Asian art, ancient ceramics, ink paintings that were hundreds of years old, but I rarely saw work that I felt represented the vibrancy and colorful, complex experience as a contemporary Korean American woman. As I continue to create work, I find that I am filling the lack of representation that I felt when I was younger. Seeing the way that my work has been received so positively by the Korean American community, it's very fulfilling to think that through my contributions the void might feel smaller for a Korean American girl in the future. As Korean culture, Kpop, and Kdrama, has entered into Western culture, I've seen many people that aren't of Korean heritage take interest in learning more about Korea. I think it's important that this interest in Korea and its culture isn't flattened into stereotypes. The Korean people and the Korean diaspora are multifaceted. Through art making and storytelling these unique and different aspects of what it is to be Korean American can be conveyed to help educate others.

Can you share any upcoming projects or exhibitions you're excited about?

I'll be an artist-in-residence at the Nicholson Project in Washington DC from October through December at the end of this year. I'm very excited to have their support and the time and space to build out my next body of work as we enter into 2025.

JULIA CHON | KIMCHI JUICE | KOREAN ARCHIVES

Julia Chon, better known by her artist name Kimchi Juice, is a Washington DC-based artist and muralist. Chon’s work explores the relationship between cultural tradition and its effects on generational identity and the decisions Asian Americans make to form their identities. With a prominent Korean aesthetic in each piece, Chon merges her ancestry and traditions with the contemporary to convey the nuances of the Korean diaspora.

As Chon’s work makes its way from canvas to large-scale murals, these intimate portraits takecenter stage in an urban environment. Her murals can be found internationally and her work hasbeen exhibited in solo and group shows in Washington DC, Los Angeles, CA and New York City, NY. Chon’s clients and collaborations include NASA, Apple, the Korean Cultural Center, and the Phillips Collection, among others. Chon was featured in the HBO docuseries “Take Out with Lisa Ling”.

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