Beyond Orientalism and Gender

Raised in a patriarchal and hierarchical society shaped by the lingering trauma of Japanese occupation and the Korean War, I came to confront the layered dynamics of gender discrimination through both lived experience and artistic practice. Art became a means of critically visualizing and resisting these structures. After immigrating to the United States, exposure to multicultural environments deepened my reflections on identity, sexuality, and cultural hybridity.

My work seeks to move beyond Orientalist framings and binary constructs of sex and gender, embracing ambiguity, fluidity, and embodied self-expression. In conversation with the panel’s theme, this presentation challenges dominant narratives and celebrates the complexity of intersectional identities through visual and performative art.