《Sweet Rain That Fell》Multidisciplinary Artist: Yae Jee Min
採訪編輯 Interview and Edited by｜謝蕎安 Joanne Hsieh
圖文 Image courtesy｜閔詣智 Yae-Jee Min
芝加哥, USA. Chicago, IL.
閔詣智 Yae-Jee Min，韓裔美籍藝術家，現居芝加哥。閔的創作，第一眼有些難捉摸，但有種特殊的魅力：柔和的色彩麟光閃爍，畫面中似有若無的事物意象，稍縱即逝。溫柔而充滿底蘊，沈澱在觀者視覺記憶深處，初看時沒有其他當代藝術繪畫的張牙舞爪，卻讓人想回頭細細品味。經過一年多觀察這位不張揚但如河水徐徐前進的藝術家，從她 2019 年畢業於芝加哥藝術學院 (Saic)，我和閔詣智在今年七月份聯絡，做了第一次訪談。（Yae-Jee 於今年十月份在芝加哥的Julius Caesar 畫廊的個展 Sweet Rain that Fell: Through a Kaleidoscope。）
Ｑ： 嗨 Yae Jee！可以和讀者自我介紹一下嗎？
Hi Yae-Jee, thanks for doing this interview! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Yae-Jee：「我出生在南韓的晉州，但是在南加州 Torrance 長大。在 Torrance 成長還蠻有意思的，因為那邊有非常多的亞裔居民。很有人情味也很多元。我和朋友們以前常開玩笑-在那邊根本不可能學會英文。 在我的成長過程中可以接觸到韓國跟美國文化，尤其是在這個亞裔美國人的環境中長大。像許多其他 "1 1/2" 代移民的孩子，我有時候覺得自己被兩邊的文化都排除在外。我爸爸以前在一間韓國航空公司上班，所以我們經常在暑假回韓國，我覺得自己在兩邊往返非常頻繁。」
I was born in Jinju, South Korea and grew up mostly in Torrance, California. It was interesting place to grow since there was a heavy Asian American population. Very warm and diverse. My friends and I use to joke that it was impossible to learn English here. I grew up with access to both Korean and American cultures, especially in tuned with this Asian American hybridity. And like a lot of other 1.5 generation kids, I felt kind of alienated from both sides of my identity. My dad used to work for a Korean airlines company, so our family went back to Korea often for summer breaks. So I felt like I was in between a lot.
Ｑ：你會推薦訪客去哪些地方？
What are your recommendations (places, activities) for visitors?
Yae Jee：「可能是典型的南加州作風吧，我常常去海邊。南加州跟首爾感覺有點像，各種潮流來來去去的很快。來洛杉磯郡的話一定要去爬山，然後去小東京吃點心，我也喜歡Institute of Contemporary Art，還有downtown 的屋頂酒吧，也可以去 Salvation Mountain。
It might be stereotypical SoCal vibe, but I went to the beach a lot. It’s like Seoul in many ways because trends come and go very quickly. Hiking is a must in LA county, along with cakes at Little Tokyo, ICA, rooftop bars in DTLA, Salvation Mountain, getting acupuncture, etc
Ｑ：會如何和陌生人形容自己的創作？
How would you describe your work to a stranger?
Yae-Jee：「一個混合體、一池水塘。我的創作以繪畫 (painting) 和美工 (craft) 的語言來呈現一個意象。以”繪圖”為主，用抽象的畫面和以及各種筆觸為輔，來重新敘事。」
A mix, a pool. My work takes the language of painting and craft to create an image. It is drawing oriented, focusing an abstraction and mark making as a way of recreating narratives.
（我的創作）是用趣味的方式呈現水、往事以及身份認同
Ｑ：貫穿你作品的主題是什麼？
Is there a continuous theme in your work? Yae-Jee：「用趣味的方式呈現水、往事以及身份認同。」
Water, nostalgia, and identity through whimsy.
Ｑ：亮片和布料，在你的創作中具有何種重要性？
What is the significance of sequins and fabrics in your work?
Yae-Jee：「觸感 (tacticality) 對我而言很重要。我喜歡創作能強調 ”觸覺“ 的作品。我從小到大有很嚴重的散光，所以我看東西都是看到強烈的光束，我用亮片來模仿那種感覺。亮片有一種珍貴感：一小片無足輕重的塑膠--一小片美好的光亮。從一個可以輕而易舉得到的物品中尋得喜悅。我也喜歡亮片微微的黏著感，透過皮膚的油膩和汗水黏在身上。」
Tactility is important to me. I’m interested in making work that enforce haptic nature. I had bad astigmatism for most of my life. So the way I view things was through a burst of long lines of light. Sequins mimic that for me. Also it seems very precious to me. A small inane piece of plastic that is really inconsequential. But a lovely bit of shine. The idea of finding joy in something accessible. It’s ok if you loose a piece of sequin. I also enjoy its slight tacky texture, how it sticks to you due to sweat and oil on the skin.
Ｑ：你的美感來源是什麼？（色彩、主題等等）
What inspire your aesthetic choices?(Colors, motifs, etc.)
Yae-Jee：「我最近用了很多深藍、暗黑和銀色。我經常變換用色。以往我只用粉彩色系，現在我喜歡把用色想成是在光譜中跳躍。」
I been using dark colors lately, muted blues, blacks, and silvers. My color choices change pretty constantly. It use to just stay in pastels, but now I like to think its more of bouncing prism now.
「蝴蝶、動物、花卉等式樣經常出現在我作品當中。有時會有漂浮的山丘和一個圓形。至於媒材，各種都有。我目前的基本公式是使用亮片的布料、上面再覆上一層尼龍纖維，但在兩層布料之間，或是在最上一層，我會用壓克力到化妝品之間的各種媒材。」
Butterflies, fauna, and floral comes up a lot in my work. Along with floating hills and a circle. For medium it really is a free for all. I have a basic formula now of using sequin fabrics and a layer of polyester on top. But in between the layers or on top I use everything from acrylics to makeup.
Ｑ：可以聊聊你的藝術相關學經歷嗎？
Can you tell us about your art-related education and experiences?
Yae-Jee：「我在大學唸的是心理學。畢業之後我很恐慌，最後決定要做藝術。我去了一間（韓式）美術補習班上基本繪畫。我製作了作品集，去芝加哥藝術學院的大學部，然後繼續升上碩士班。在學校我認知到藝術的定義有多廣；我在織品系學到很多創作的方式。」
I went college for psychology. Graduated, freaked out, and decided that I want to do art instead. So went to an after school hawgon (a Korean word for a for-profit private institute) for art and took lessons on basic painting and drawing. I made a portfolio, went to SAIC for a BFA and then got my MFA from the same school. School really opened up my definition of what art could be. The fibers department was really where I learned how to make art.
Ｑ：誰是你的靈感導師？你崇拜哪些藝術家？
Who inspire you and your favorite artists?
Yae-Jee：「梁慧圭（Haegue Yang 양혜규 )、Kimsooja、Karla Black、前拉菲爾派（Pre Raphaelites)、Jessica Stockholder （美國裝置藝術家）、韓國刺繡、”Dansaekhwa“ （韓文 “單色畫” ）、我母親也影響我深刻。我最近買了一本有關 1950 年代的韓國藝術，我很興奮要來閱讀。我也喜歡蛋糕。」
Haegue Yang, Kimsooja, Karla Black, Pre Raphaelites, Korean embroidery, Jessica Stockholder, Sam Gilliam, my Mom, Dansaekhwa （(Dansaekhwa: Korean Monochrome Painting）. I just got a book about that Korean art from the 1950s that I really excited about. Also cake.
我用很多粉彩色、以及”手工“ 這種被歸類為 “女性化” 的創作手法，因此經常要為自己的創作辯護
Ｑ：孩提時代的你最喜歡做什麼？這些活動對你現在的藝術創作是否有影響？
What were your favorite activities as a child? Do they have a significance in your practice as an artist now?
Yae-Jee：「我小時候沒有什麼活力，我最喜歡窩成一團的看書。我很愛聽音樂跟做白日夢。我覺得現在的我仍然如此，除了不再是靠閱讀來創造私密空間，我用藝術來創造自己的空間。是那種像蛹一樣、把自己裹起來的感覺。我最懷念的一個記憶是爬到我外婆堆滿柔軟毯子的黑色亮漆的衣櫃裡讀書。奇怪的是我一直都很怕黑，但很多深刻的記憶是獨自在幽微的燈光下讀書。」
I always had low energy. My favorite things to do was huddle and read. I listened to music a lot and would daydream. I feel like I am still doing the same things, instead of reading to find spaces, I am creating my own spaces. It was this form of cocooning for me. One of my favorite memories is climbing into my grandmothers black lacquer closet filled with soft blankets and reading. Oddly, I have always been terrified of the dark, even though I have a lot of memories reading by the low light.
Ｑ：身為女性藝術家有經歷過什麼困難嗎？
Have you encountered any obstacles as a female artist?
Yae-Jee：「有的。可能是因為我對於介紹自己的作品總是很不安，但我常常要為自己的創作辯護。特別是因為我用很多粉彩色、以及”手工“這種被歸類為“女性化”的創作手法，大家很容易卡在討論 ”手工創作” 這部分。（藝術世界裡）絕對有油畫和雕塑被捧在最高位置的事實。」
Yeah, I have. It might be due to the fact I get so anxious talking about my work out loud, but I had to defend my choices a lot. Especially since I use a lot of pastels and crafted oriented practices that is seems to represent the ‘feminine’, people would just get stuck on the craft. There definitely is a hierarchy where painting and sculptures are held to be the standard.
「有許多超凡的藝術家用各式各樣的方式創作，但對話有時總是卡在某處。因為這樣，研究所第一年時對我來說很困難，因為很多學生不知道怎麼跳出這個迴圈來討論我的創作。鴉雀無聲的評圖真的讓人很痛苦。很多帶有“童趣”或是“女性化”的作品常被忽視，我覺得很不可取。」
Obviously there are so many phenomenal artists working in many different methods, but conversation seem to get stuck sometimes. First year in grad school was hard because of that, since some of the students did not know how to talk about my work. And quiet critique is just so painfully awkward. It's easy to dismiss work due to it being child-like and feminine. I think that’s just lazy.
信任自己吧，失敗了也沒關係
Ｑ：工作室以外的興趣是什麼？
What do you enjoy doing outside of the studio?
Yae-Jee：「我很喜歡邊散步邊聽音樂。最近喜歡聽 Rina Sawayama，Yaeji，Peggy Gou還有Park Hye Jin。我喜歡和朋友一起看電影，我以前星期二會和朋友一起去看電影因為有半價。」
I really like walking and listening to music. I been really into Rina Sawayama, Yaeji, Peggy Gou, and Park Hye Jin. Watching movies with friends. I used to have a movie date with a good friend of mine on Tuesdays because tickets were half-off.
Ｑ：身為藝術家最好的經驗是？還有得到過最好的建議是什麼？
Best memory / experience as an artist so far? And the best advice you’ve received?
Yae-Jee：「（最好的經驗是）當有人告訴我我的作品很真誠。大學時期有一個教授告訴我，做我想做的就是了。她說我很固執而且總是憑感覺去創作，那麼就信任自己吧，失敗了也沒關係。」
Whenever someone tells me my work is sincere. ( Best advice is ) one of my professors in undergrad told me do whatever I wanted. She told me that I was really stubborn and that I was going to do what I felt anyways, so to just trust that. And that its okay to fail.
特別感謝 藝術家閔詣智
Special Thanks to Yae-Jee Min.
追蹤更多輕鬆的藝術家資訊，追蹤 IG： ChiaoxArt
看更多精彩藝術家專訪，訂閱Youtube 頻道：瞧瞧藝術 ChiaoxArt
看更多 閔詣智 的精彩創作，追蹤 IG：Yae-Jee Min
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