Paint on Clothes, Installed and photographed in Davis, CA, Dimension variables
I often have video calls with my family while I am here in the United States. With no international phone call fees, I am able to see their faces in the video. Nevertheless, there are still things I cannot say to them. I think about those messages I feel shy to say, messages that feel too personal to share over the phone to loved ones. Using familiar words in Korean, I wrote what I could not say over the phone on banners and installed them in the public environment of Davis, CA. Although the words on the banners are private, I felt comfortable in my anonymity. I found during my time here that language was spoken too fast for me to understand. Through the making and displaying of my personal statements in large bold Korean text, I am able to slow down the viewer. This forces passersby to pay attention to the language separation they may not understand, as well as creating intimate communication with those that do understand.
*(Banner says ‘Mom, I miss you’, ‘My English has not improved’ from the left)