We had the good fortune of connecting with Seoyoung Kim and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Seoyoung, we’d love to hear what makes you happy.
Nothing makes me happier than when artists and supporters of the creative world come to see the openings of Site and says that the works have inspired them to go to studio, or to continue trying. Creative blocks especially as young artists happen all the time. I believe that community is what keeps them going – and Site’s mission is all about bringing communities together.
After moving to a new city shortly after graduation, I immediately felt the absence of community connection, which is crucial in developing individual practices in the professional world. I wanted Site to be a platform and opportunity for people to meet and communities to expand – bringing groups of artists together to meet and collaborate with one another.
Our inaugural exhibition ‘Site 001. Chaotic Networks’ was a mirrored of our mission perfectly. The 16-artist group show was curated as a collective experience of building connections through the occupation of space. Individual creatives came together to take part in reconstructing a composition of space as a whole.
I recently also got to re-connect with my long friends, Soeun Bae and Soo Park at ‘Site 002. △’. We first built our artistic connection back during the pandemic. I had a basement studio in Seoul during my year of leave from RISD. Towards the end of the lease, I fixed up the space into a gallery and hosted a group show with my peer artists that I felt a connection to. That was my very first curatorial project.
Drawing from our first collective experience, Soeun, Soo and I reconvened in Brooklyn three years later. With a renewed sense of materiality, movement, system and language, we formed re-solidified framings through passage in transition and growth. ‘Site 002. △’. was an exploration of tangents in existence of the twenty-something creative bodies.
Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Site is an artist-run variable experience + curation platform based in Brooklyn and Seoul. We evolve around contemporary visual narratives focusing on the relationship between artist, viewer, and space. Our programming is dedicated to connecting the arts and creative experiences through a space of confluence among artist practices and viewership.
Site is committed to building cultural partnerships and activating new and ongoing conversations in creative communities. Our programming supports the community to foster and magnify their voices into a collective experience. We approach to bring together contexts, collaborations, ideas, and issues; Bridging the gap between ideas and issues, our collaborative solutions strive to contextualize the best of the artists and their practices.
Site provides experiences and exhibitions through discourse. These human and creative experiences, emphasized by its plurality and diversity, and further elaborated, complicated, are deterritorialized into expansive environments.
Without a permanent venue, we go beyond the traditional white-cube space, reimagining what we hope to achieve as young creatives in the city, and building significant relationships – and simply enjoying and celebrating our creative practices.
Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I actually have a friend visiting this following weekend and I’ve been thinking about this a lot. I am also pretty new to the city. Our days would look like going to the park, maybe Herbert Von King, Fort Greene, or even Prospect Park – go gallery hopping – have happy hour drinks anywhere in Green Point. I love going to Hana Makgeolli or Panzon for mezcals. There are also exciting art shows coming up for Tech Week.
Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
This is a project I would never have been able to work alone. I would like to thank Javi and Hanti for his time and support. Emelia and Frank were wonderful supporters and advisors in the very beginning of the projects. HK for taking wonderful photos, documenting the very special moments of building networks. And to all of the artists for being part of the journey.
Website: https://site-service.org
Instagram: @site_____ / @keiesuai
Image Credits
photos 1-6 credit to HK Jang