Join Boston-based multidisciplinary artist Soyoung Kim in a hands-on exploration of her creative process as she relates to tradition, transition, time, and memory, in anticipation of the May 2025 opening of PEM's new Korean art gallery.

About the project:
“Sometimes we must break apart the memories that we hold onto, that binds and traps us in the present, preventing us from imagining a new future. I believe in traditions, but I believe traditions can be broken apart and changed to enter the future. When I look at my own background of being born in Seoul and growing up in Nairobi, I have inherited many lessons about traditions which I love and hold dear. But the person I am cannot necessarily fit into those old vessels. So I must break them and build new vessels, based on the foundations of the past. It is not about erasing the past, but honoring it in the present and into the future.”

Participants will select their own papier-mâché memory vessel from an array of options, break apart the vessel and patch it, envisioning and creating something new. Finish your vessel by lighting it from within with a battery-powered candle.

Established in the late 19th century and recognized as one of the first in the United States, PEM’s collection of Korean art is important for both its content and historical significance. In addition to rich holdings from the late Joseon dynasty (1392–1910), the collection highlights the work of women artisans in Korea through basketry, papier-mâché objects and textiles.

Create Nights are led by a PEM educator or local guest artist.

Celebrating Korean Art is supported by the Korean Cultural Center, Washington, D.C.

About the artist

Soyoung L Kim was born in Seoul, South Korea, but grew up in Nairobi, Kenya. She received her MFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. In 2021, she was a recipient of the Live Arts Boston Grant from The Boston Foundation. She has exhibited in both solo and group shows, including Boston Center for the Arts, Trustman Art Gallery, and Pao Arts Center. Kim’s work has been written about in the Boston Globe and the Boston Art Review. Her works are included in the public collections of Google, Cambridge. Kim is currently based in Boston, MA.