Meet Seojung Lee | Artist, Designer, Educator, and Womanist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Seojung Lee and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Seojung, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I started my own business right after graduating college because I want to pursue MFA program at CSU as a full time students while building up my experience as a graphic designer. This is my portfolio website that showed my design works. (https://seojung.myportfolio.com) My ultimate goal is being a tenured professor in higher education. I started to work with my friends’ and families’ branding project and it expanded to have a local silk screening event as an artist. For example, I designed illustrations with Adobe software based on client’s goal. I transfer my designs to silk screen by using emulsion and UV exposure machine. In a local silk screening event, I made a t-shirt/print for people with this technique. This link is a collaboration video with Colorado State University to explain my silk screening works.

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.

I immigrated to the U.S. in my early 20. I was struggling with my roots because I felt my identity was lost between Korea and America. I got hurt from microaggression that people were curious about my ‘real’ home. I use my art and design to find my grounding and to understand myself as a transformational idea. I am validating my in-betweeness by creating a series of artist’s book. I used design, printmaking, and post-digital printmaking to create my stories. I used Illustrator in Adobe programs to create the design contents first. Then. I used cyanotype process which is the oldest photographic technique to get cyan blue color under UV sun light. I apply mixed iron solution in a darkroom on to Hanji Paper(Korean Dak Paper) and wait for 24 hours. Then, I brought the coated paper outside to be directly exposed to the sun with an image which I created with computer on top. Design with black typography and the line will turn to white because it blocked by design itself. However, clear part in design turns to blue after exposing to the sun because it is directly exposed by sun. This cyanotype process represent my transforming identities who has been changed to an Asian American from a Korean in the U.S. After cyanotype process, I designed each hole, cut it through a laser cutter, and weave each hole with red strings to show my stories from wound to heal. My narrative will support different immigrant communities to validate their transition from their home country to the U.S.

Most proud part: I did a material research for this whole project. I didn’t think regular white BFK paper(regular printmaking paper) couldn’t represent my background as a Korean. Therefore, I visited to South Korea last summer to research about Hanji (Korean Dak Paper). Hanji is made of Korean Dak tree which is specifically grown in Korea’s weather. I researched many artisan and I found one Hanji artisan who are dedicating his whole life to preserve and make a trandional style Hanji paper. He lived in my hometown, Jeonju. I met him, watched his process from growing tree to make Hanji paper from the tree bark, and bought his paper. This artist’s book had my embodiment with Korean culture and traditions. Also, handmade Hanji paper is acid free paper which has neutral PH. It can be last over 1000 years.

Most Challenge part: I need to expose my paper under the Colorado sun for a metaphor that I have been changing under the sun Colorado as an Asian American. However, it has different cyan saturation depends on intensity of sun. I could use exposure machine which requires higher electricity consumption and easy to have consistency. I used only exposure directly from sun for a metaphor as transitioning and want to save energy.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
This scenario is perfect because my mom and brother will visit Fort Collins for my graduation in this May. I love Colorado a lot because of the beautiful nature. This nature reminded me interconnectedness with local community and earth mother. I would take them one of my favorite nature place, Chautauqua Park. This place is very famous for taking graduation photos for CU boulder’s students because of the beautiful mountain and scenery. There are many different routes you can choose, but I would choose 1 hour and 30 min hiking course for beginners. Then I can bring the, a very famous place next to parking lot named Chautauqua Dining Hall. My favorite menu is churro beignet. After then, I will guide them to Boulder Pearl Street to shop and eat dessert.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I am grateful to meet wonderful people in my life who have been amazing mentors. Thank you for Anna Bernhard(Director, Stanley G. Wold Resource Center, CSU) and Johnny Plastini (CSU professor) who teach me an artist’s book and cyanotype. Dr. Caridad Souza and Dr. Ting-Fang (Claire) have been teaching me to the art-based research and feminist consciousness. I want to use my life for researching as/for/with women of color because of these people. I want to thank my husband, Tyler and my son Daniel who encourage my studies and work everyday. I appreciate my mother’s praying toward me and her prayer and spirituality helped me to go through my journey. Lastly, I want to thank my God Heavenly Father who has been walk me along this way.

Website: https://seojung.myportfolio.com

Instagram: @seojung_lee_graphic_design

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seojung/

Youtube: https://youtu.be/HO_MbdxyrJw

Image Credits
All images/design/art are created and taken photos by myself.