Ji Yeon Yu

Ji Yeon Yu, is an emerging visual artist who currently lives in New York. She recently received her Bachelor of Fine Arts Photography at Pratt Institute. Rooted in experiences both in America and Korea, her works include various themes such as cultural norms, environmental changes and language differences. However, the biggest inspiration of her artworks is her family, who always give love and support however removed they are. Since she has studied abroad from the age of 14, her long distance bonding and intimacy with family has strengthened over time. She tries to approach her work by recording mundane and ordinary moments in two different countries that seemingly anyone can experience, but each moment is expressed in different way depending on ones culture.

contrail ; 비행운

Packing and unpacking two huge carriers.
Spending long time to reach very short pleasant moments.
Getting used to being alone and saying good-bye to others.

It has been 9 years.  Staying in 2 totally different environments made me confused.

I always thought I do not belong anywhere.
I always questioned to myself, who am I?

To find myself,
I thought I must be different from others.
I thought I must find a specific place to belong to.

But, it was not. I am still me.
No matter where I go or stay, I am just what I am.

My life is like a contrail, a cloud that created by temperature differences of airplane’s engine.
Even though the temperature differences exist, these create “one result,” the contrail.
It is same to me.

Even I have been lived in two total different countries over 9 years,
I have discovered that I am just who I am wherever I live or leave.