Kim Jiyoung Born 1982,
Cho Nam-Joo

We want to portray the mental and physical struggles of women throughout different generations and time periods, by illustrating multiple women on different pages and writing on the back of the pages the similarities and differences of different women and their struggles. We also will draw the family from the book explaining what the different members of the family were and how they influenced each of the members of the family, as well as how it affected their dynamics in their family. We also want to show the different women we researched throughout the time we were reading the book and the similarities they all have to the struggles the women in the book we read to connect them even further. We will connect the pages with red string to resemble the pain they felt, possible anger they feel, and even possible resentment we see in the book from Kim JiYoung when she has her child. Corbin’s main role in the project will be to do the writing on the back of the paper connecting the characters to one another and writing what the image depicts, and I will be mainly drawing the images. 

Perceptions of different people

This was created using 8.5 in. x 11in paper, mechanical pencil, gel ink ballpoint pen, graphite pencils, and colored pencils. I started off differently where it was a jumbled mess of symbols and other miscellaneous things 2 times, until I took inspiration from one of my sister’s work she did for two books for the same class. Creating what was inspired off from her works, mine appeared much more clearer and more thoughtful than the previous. Using what I was thinking of creating, I drew a person in the middle holding their belly as blood flowed beneath their feet with babies crawling up, the picture representing the birth rates.

I loved the book Kim Ji-young, Born 1982 by Cho Nam Joo; and it made creating something around it harder. Not specifically due to my love of the book but because of what caused that love. Kim Ji-young, Born 1982 describes the experience of a woman so well, and I desperately wanted to share it as well as Cho Nam Joo did. Normally I work with realism, but I didn’t think the subject called for that, at least not an image entirely made of realistic things. The experience is too universal to be put in one context. Which leads to the final piece: a man, a woman, and balloons. The man is quick to see because of his size and colour, which contrasts against the orange and yellow background faster than a light pink ever could. He also has a briefcase which is another prop to show his power of the woman; he can work a job without something getting in the way. He makes the income. The woman is smaller and only noticeable because of the purple clothing on the yellow and orange backgrounds. The man was done in oil paints. Oil paints to me are the most “professional” paint. It’s the medium associated with the Renaissance, it's bound to be recognized as regal; but oil paint also takes a long time to dry. As the oil paint does with drying a boy does with learning. He takes longer to learn than a girl does, but because he is seen as better he is treated with more respect and given more leeway that is okay. I first did a layer of acrylic paint with the man, because scientifically it takes longer for boys to learn, it is society that treats them as better. The woman is done in acrylic and pastel. Acrylic is quick drying, and for me; easier to use. A woman will gain her intelligence faster, once again, scientifically, but also because she is taught to not make mistakes as she will be punished. She is in charge of the cooking, cleaning, and taking care of kids, so if she does not solidify quickly she will be seen as useless. Pastel was added to show she is at a breaking point. Everyday she is driven to the brink and easily messed up. Pastel isn’t known for its cleanliness, it’s quick to get everything dirty if smudged. Not only did I choose the colours because of what’ll stand out but also because of the norms these colours promote; pink for girls, blue for boys, yellow for neutral. Pink and blue are rather direct, but yellow is more complex; because when is anything ever neutral. I added specs of orange because I knew this “neutrality” still caters towards men. People will normally hope for a boy; yellow and orange are standing in for when blue can finally pop. Blue and orange are complementary colours, and are bound to allow each other to stand out. The woman's dress is purple, which is the complementary colour towards yellow. She is only seen and appreciated if she looks her best. Positive attention towards women is normally just objectification. She is pregnant with a girl as seen by the smaller pink balloon. While the man holds heart balloons they are not sincere as he still holds a balloon stating there’s always next time; and it is a statement. He will not be satisfied until he has a boy. 

Scales of Justice: Patriarchy in Korea

In our piece, the scales of justice illustrate the immense misogyny and social hierarchy embedded within Korean society. “MEN” and “WOMEN” are depicted on each side of the scale representing the distinct gender roles and differences within Korean society. The side representing the role of women in Korean society sinks down, forcing the side depicting the role of men to rise. This representation of gender roles in Korean society represents the social hierarchy that perpetuates gender discrimination in Korean society and the limited opportunities available for women. This representation closely connects to the depiction of opportunity in Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo. The novel reflects on the limited opportunity and sacrifices forced on women in this system of social hierarchy, specifically portraying the limited opportunity in education and the workforce. At the foundation of discrimination and misogyny throughout Korean history was the eradication of Korean culture and the exploitation of women's substandard positions within Korean society. 

Our research reflects our understanding of Confucianism and its role in shaping South Korea’s gender and social hierarchy; the Japanese occupation of Korea, how the concept of ‘comfort women’ dehumanized and exploited Korean women; and the Korean War, how the war and post-war era in South Korea further militarized Korean society, becoming a justification for the degradation and removal of resources and rights for women. These patriarchal norms, seen throughout Korean history and embedded within the piece are reflected in the novel's depiction of Kim Jiyoung’s challenges navigating the social landscape in South Korea and her challenges in education and the workplace. The norms expressed in the project shine light on a social and societal landscape designed to suppress and exploit women, challenging not only the constructs of Korean society and inequality but the audience's own perspectives and understanding of gender discrimination and misogyny. 

Situated on a silhouette of South Korea are quotes from the novel. The quotes illustrate the first-hand perspective of a woman in Korean society, and how the main character in the novel discovers her substandard position in society through events in her life. The piece was designed utilizing CAD software, a tool that allowed us to utilize our artistic abilities in a way that expresses our understanding of the novel. Once the components were designed, we 3D printed them, assembled the piece, and used a design of Korea to laser-cut it, and glued it onto the scale with the quotes attached.

The piece represents our understanding of the injustice, imbalance, and misogyny present in Korean society, functioning in a way that suppresses women and prioritizes the role and opportunity of men. Our research process challenged our personal understanding of gender roles, particularly in Korea, and we used that to guide our creation. We used known and new skills during the creation process, helping us create the final piece. In the end, this process was eye-opening, interesting, and difficult at times, but we will take with us the knowledge and social perspectives, reflected throughout our research and within the novel. 

For my project, I chose to go with the concept of misogyny, and that it’s a huge theme within the novel. For the final project, I created a graph to show how in South Korea, men have more rights than women, and women’s rights are almost entirely nonexistent there. The rights that women have there are extremely limited, and often find themselves in stressful situations, and will feel pressured by even their own families. If women do even a slight thing incorrectly, their entire society will look down on them as if they committed a crime. Women, specifically mothers, will find themselves not being able to find a job that fits their schedule, as this was very much the case with Jiyoung. I used the color blue to represent men, while I used pink to represent women in South Korea, as those colors are used for those genders. The graph itself shows that men’s rights are going up, while women’s rights are going down, and an image of a woman being bound by chains, while there is a man smiling behind her. This is supposed to represent the idea that women in South Korea can’t fight against discrimination, but also can’t speak up against sexual assault, which is why the woman has her mouth taped shut. 

I chose to do a graph because I was inspired by an assignment that we as a class did, called the Happiness Graph. In that assignment we had to use 3 different perspectives of women from the novel by showing how happy that they feel in their society. And I chose to go along with that idea, because I think that the concept of a graph goes well with the concept of misogyny, because there is always a higher up, due to certain societal norms and overall opinions, but also because it is an important part of the novel. The meaning of the novel overall is that misogyny is not only a sexist act, but it also can heavily impact a woman’s daily life. 

How this shows what I know about human nature and societal norms is that it shows how in a lot of societies it is often the case where women are viewed as inferior, and as a result don’t have very equal rights compared to men, and are often subject to things like sexual assault, and hate crimes at very young ages. Humans also tend to look at things that are different, and think negatively about it, even when it is about a topic that cannot be solved. The meaning of my project is that there is always going to be a moment where people discriminate against others, and that there won’t always be a direct, immediate solution to it.