performance – Younghui Kim (Marie)

Directing Students Media Art Project for Hongik Fashion Week Runway 2023

Posted on July 12, 2024July 16, 2024 by absurdee

Opening sequence by Subin Kim, Min Young Kim, Junmin Park, Sarah Yoon (School of Design Convergence) at Hongik Fashion Week BFA fashion show runway, Nov 3 2023, All RIghts reversed to the aritists © 2023

2023년은 학부보직과 맞물려 여러 미디어아트 프로젝트로 분주한 한 해였다. 이제야 포스팅을 하지만, 뒤돌아 보니 보람되기도 하다. 홍익대학교 대학혁신사업 특성화학과 간에 공통적인 특성화 분야인 디자인분야에 대해서 각 학과가 독립적으로 프로그램을 운영하고 있으나 특성화학과 간 디자인분야에서 시너지 효과를 창출할 수 있는 융합 및 협업 프로젝트로 홍익패션위크를 시행함으로써 차별화된 본교의 디자인 특성화 경쟁력을 확보하고자하였다. 이렇게 특성화학과 간 디자인분야에서 시너지 효과를 창출하는 경험을 가진 참여학생들은 섬유패션디자인학과와 미디어아트 프로젝트 협업을 통하여 디자인컨버전스학부의 커리큘럼 관련 프로젝트를 실제 미디어 영상 런웨이 무대로 설치하여 빅스크린에 프로젝션맵핑하여 패션쇼와 공연무대와 함께 준비하면서 실무에서 배울 수 있는 값진 경험을 가질 수 있다고 보았다.

물론 여름방학을 시작으로 넉달 간 4팀의 학생들을 지도하고 리허설하고, 기술적인 기획을 담당하는 것은 많은 에너지가 소요되는 일이었지만, 성공적으로 이벤트를 끝내고 나니, 모두에게 값진 경험이지 않았나 싶다. 특히 기존 업체의 잘못 측정된 무대 사이즈임에도 불구하고 하루만에 거대한 스크린벽과 빔프로젝터 4대와 소프트웨어 컨트롤룸을 뚝딱 설치해내신 에이플래넷의 박대표님의 도움없이는 힘든 무대였을 거 같다.

The year 2023 has been a busy year for me due to several art projects. Among them, art directing my students (9 students, 4 teams from School of Design Convergence) collaborating for the fashion show runway media art projection. There are 4 group of students from School of Design Convergence, Dept of Textile & Fashion Design, School of Performing Art, and School of Advertising and Promotion at Hongik University, planning, and creating an impactful day event since June.

Sound Generative Visuals projection on the banner textile by Sarah Yoon during live music performance rehearsal (School of Design Convergence) at Hongik Fashion Week BFA fashion show runway, Nov 3 2023, All RIghts reversed to the aritists © 2023

D day was Nov 3rd, 2023 and the event was held at the main Gym at Hongik University, Seoul Campus. Our media art team worked on constructing the screen walls & media banners, and creating media art for both MFA and BFA fashion shows.

The theme is ‘Peace is Blue’ so, for the MFA fashion show opening, my students created AI-driven moving images using prompts based on the keywords that MFA students provided. (Both 10 meters long fabric banner screen and for 17 meters wide 6 meters high main stage screens. There was a live music performance by students from the School of Performing Art and we created a sound generated visuals for their performance as well as cat walk.

Fashion BFA graduates’ Interview shot & edited by Eungyul Park, and Subin Kim, School of Design Convergence, Hongik U. 2023

For the opening of BFA fashion show, we created an opening movie that contains what BFA students think of ‘peace’ in their own languages. Also, their words are on the banner projection screen.

It was a full four months production and I had to give up my summer break but, it was worth it.

Below is the opening art performance video captured casually.

_{AI-driven (partially) opening animation with the prompts based on keywords that fashion designers wrote about the theme, ‘Peace’. by Jumin Park, Sara Yoon, Min Young Kim – directed by Younghui Kim, School of Design Convergence, Hongik University. All RIghts reversed to the aritists © 2023}

Body Graffiti v. 2.0

Posted on September 3, 2010May 23, 2011 by absurdee

Younghui is working on Body Graffiti version 2.0 currently along other her other series on Wearable Technology Art. Compared to previous version, this version has double resolution (64 pixel) to draw better graphic and will have better fashion design. The new CPB is a lot thinner and flexible and modular so it won’t make any wearable bulky and a flat rechargeable Lithium battery with a voltage regulator will be used. The finished design will be on the blog soon but, here is the cpb version 2.0.

For the finished Body Graffiti version 2.0, Swing Boots, click here to read >>>

Body Graffiti at HCI 2010

Posted on February 12, 2010February 12, 2010 by absurdee

Body Graffiti is a wearable technology research project at WCU Digital Media Public Art Research Center at Hongik U. (in collaboration with Dan Mikesell, Hyuns Hong and Last For One, Jan 2010)

HCI Party – Body Graffiti

Posted on January 15, 2010February 3, 2010 by absurdee

As one of the organizing committee of HCI Korea 2010, I’ve been curating HCI Kids exhibition and producing HCI Party events. My good friend from Japan, Tetsu Kondo is planning to have a talk and a performance, “Dendraw” – which is a beautiful visual and musical performance.

For the second part of the event, as a researcher of the Hongik University WCU Digital Media Public Art Research Center, I’ve decided to combine HCI and WCU research together. One of our visiting professors, Dan Mikesell will have a short talk and our on going research project, ‘Body Graffiti‘ with a world champion B-boy group, ‘Last4One‘ It was three years ago when I coincidently met a producer of a B-boy musical within a month I moved in Seoul. When I explain to him that I make wearable art and explained it as a form of media art, he was interested in interactive performance. So I’ve suggested the exact project as of the today’s ‘Body Graffiti’ to him but, I think it was too early for Korean contemporary art scene to *get* wearable technology stuff at that time or perhaps, I needed to talk directly to the director of the B-boy team.

body graffiti CPB first version, yay! — Body Graffiti CPB v. 1.0, ©2010, Hongik U.

As parallel to developing wearable technology research with Dan, I’ve contacted that Producer guy and this time, explained my project with a sketch. He got very interested and promised to introduce me to that B-boy team and he did. ‘Last for One’ crew are truly amazing and their manager and director guys are both very genuine and loves to experiment with technology. Street art fits truly into public art. We both felt that this is just the beginning of the collaboration. We had our first testing session with two Bboy dancers few days ago at our lab and it was pretty interesting.

first testing with the rough circuit — first testing with rough circuits pinned on their clothing, Jan 2010

Thanks to great help from our RA students(Kyungmi, Jungsu + Hyuns Hong(who is one of my former students) we’ve managed to make multiple prototypes working and Hyuns finished the CPB drawing v.1. based on trials of prototypes. Software testing is done and we can easily process graphics we like to draw. The major problem to solve now is the batteries b/c 9V battery is too bulky and smaller ones are very often too weak to turn on blinking 32 LEDs at once. But, I think we found some possible solutions today.

It’s been many long days as I woke up and went straight to the research lab then came back home at midnight to sleep & repeat that. We only got 10 days to produce all the final wearable devices of ‘Body Graffiti’ so, it looks like my life would be in that fashion for a while. Non-stop activities of sewing, soldering and programming.

The most important thing is the fact that I’ve been dreaming of making this wearable + Bboy dance performance since 3 years ago and now, it’s becoming a reality and printed event that will take a place at HCI 2010, Korean ski resort, Phoenix Park.

Here is the link of the event (sorry the site is in Korean) >>

I plan to post more detail description of ‘Body Graffiti’ with the photo images after the performance. Oh, did I mention that I will be MC – ing for the special event? Not sure how it will go.

– Younghui