Cross the Flow of Violence
흐르는 폭력을 건너기
Interactive performance, 30’ 00”, Apr 2025
“Dare to cross the flow of violence — with a broker as your guide.”
This 30-minute interactive performance for 15 audience members is led by the artist in the role of a “broker” — a figure who helps the perilous escape from North Korea to China for a price. Brokers play a significant role in guiding North Korean refugees across the Tumen River, a heavily monitored border where armed guards patrol day and night.
Inspired by the story of Mrs. Kim, a North Korean refugee who survived underwater while crossing the river, the artist leads the audience through the exhibition space as if navigating the swirling flow of American imperialist violence in the trans-Pacific. The space becomes a fragmented landscape of memories, witnesses, and echoes — demanding that participants move through it with uncertainty, urgency, and resolve.
As Mrs. Kim once said, “You either die or survive underwater.”
Together, we submerge into this flow, fumbling through the death, pain, and grit of those who came before us. Will we be able to connect to the flow and emerge on the other side of the land?
Inspired by the story of Mrs. Kim, a North Korean refugee who survived underwater while crossing the river, the artist leads the audience through the exhibition space as if navigating the swirling flow of American imperialist violence in the trans-Pacific. The space becomes a fragmented landscape of memories, witnesses, and echoes — demanding that participants move through it with uncertainty, urgency, and resolve.
As Mrs. Kim once said, “You either die or survive underwater.”
Together, we submerge into this flow, fumbling through the death, pain, and grit of those who came before us. Will we be able to connect to the flow and emerge on the other side of the land?
Photo by Sin Yu
Artist talk moderated by Srimoyee Mitra
Flowing Violence: meet me at the water, immersive video installation
흐르는 폭력: 물에서 만나요, 몰입형 비디오 설치
3-channel video (4K color, stereo), 9’ 09”, Dec 2024
<흐르는 폭력 Flowing Violence>은 한국계 미국인 시인 김경희와의 협업으로 제작된 멀티센서리(multi-sensory) 설치 작업이다. 시간과 국경을 초월하는 전지구적 물의 흐름과 연결되어 함께 흐르는 폭력을 다룬다. 한국전쟁 학살 희생자들을 태운 재, 한강에 갓난 아기와 투신하려던 할머니의 피눈물, 그리고 현재 이루어지는 폭력의 현장에서 흐르는 모든 잔여물들이 흘러 ‘우리’의 몸에 닿는 순간을 상상하도록 이끈다.
Flowing Violence (2024) is a multimedia installation made in collaboration with Korean American poet Kyunghee Kim. It invites the audience to imagine how silenced violence may flow with water, reaching the land and the bodies we live in, transcending borders and time.
The average speed of water molecules is around hundred meters per second in an open space. We are 70 percent water and about 98 percent of all the atoms in our body are replaced every year. We are in constant flow. The flow of water, the flow of life, the flow of history, and maybe, the flow of violence.
the blood and ashes of a few hundred civilian refugees, who were massacred by American
armies under the No Gun Ri Bridge during the Korean War,
and ‘the tears of blood’ (피눈물) that my grandmother shed, while dragging her two babies to Han River to commit family suicide after the war,
and more
and ‘the tears of blood’ (피눈물) that my grandmother shed, while dragging her two babies to Han River to commit family suicide after the war,
and more
might have been dissolved into the water,
flowing from there to here, from then to now,
taken into our bodies, haunting us,
saying,
meet me at the water
I am here,
all along
with us, before us,
in us*
I am here,
all along
with us, before us,
in us*
A video component of the installation is a 3-channel video, meet me at the water (2024), of which title is borrowed from the title of Kim’s poem written for the video. The video consists of distinct perspectives: high-angle shots and underwater shots of the Huron River near the artist’s residence. These represent two views: one of humans living their everyday lives, and the other of violence, which may flow beneath the surface—quietly but constantly. The seemingly peaceful river carries faint, almost invisible traces of blood and ashes. As the voice in the video whispers and recites a poem revealing American imperialist violence in Asia, the camera begins to travel underwater, where the blood and ashes visibly mingle and dissolve into the river’s flow. The video invites the audience to feel submerged, flowing alongside these particles, and to connect with a silenced tragedy carried by the water.
*an excerpt of the poem, meet me at the water (2024)
Full Work Statement (ENG) ︎︎︎
Read the poem (ENG, KOR) ︎︎︎
Directed
by Okyoung Noh
Poem by Kyunghee Kim
Filmed by Okyoung Noh, Ben Zink
Edited by Okyoung Noh
Music by Chien-An Yuan
Installation advised by Joe Rohrer
Voice by Kyunghee Kim, Leah Crosby, Okyoung Noh
Poem by Kyunghee Kim
Filmed by Okyoung Noh, Ben Zink
Edited by Okyoung Noh
Music by Chien-An Yuan
Installation advised by Joe Rohrer
Voice by Kyunghee Kim, Leah Crosby, Okyoung Noh
Flowing Violence (2024) is a multimedia installation made in collaboration with Korean American poet Kyunghee Kim. It invites the audience to imagine how silenced violence may flow with water, reaching the land and the bodies we live in, transcending borders and time.
The average speed of water molecules is around hundred meters per second in an open space. We are 70 percent water and about 98 percent of all the atoms in our body are replaced every year. We are in constant flow. The flow of water, the flow of life, the flow of history, and maybe, the flow of violence.
The blood and ashes of a few hundred civilian refugees, who were massacred by American armies under the No Gun Ri Bridge during the Korean War,
and ‘the tears of blood’ (피눈물) that my grandmother shed, while dragging her two babies to Han River to commit family suicide after the war,
and more
The average speed of water molecules is around hundred meters per second in an open space. We are 70 percent water and about 98 percent of all the atoms in our body are replaced every year. We are in constant flow. The flow of water, the flow of life, the flow of history, and maybe, the flow of violence.
The blood and ashes of a few hundred civilian refugees, who were massacred by American armies under the No Gun Ri Bridge during the Korean War,
and ‘the tears of blood’ (피눈물) that my grandmother shed, while dragging her two babies to Han River to commit family suicide after the war,
and more
might have been dissolved into the water,
flowing from there to here, from then to now,
taken into our bodies, haunting us,
saying,
I am here,
all along
with us, before us,
in us*
all along
with us, before us,
in us*
Flowing Violence: meet me at the water, immersive video installation
흐르는 폭력: 물에서 만나요, 몰입형 비디오 설치
3-channel video (4K color, stereo). 9’ 09”. 2024
A video component of the installation is a 3-channel video, meet me at the water (2024), of which title is borrowed from the title of Kim’s poem written for the video. The video consists of distinct perspectives: high-angle shots and underwater shots of the Huron River near the artist’s residence. These represent two views: one of humans living their everyday lives, and the other of violence, which may flow beneath the surface—quietly but constantly.
The seemingly peaceful river carries faint, almost invisible traces of blood and ashes. As the voice in the video whispers and recites a poem revealing American imperialist violence in Asia, the camera begins to travel underwater, where the blood and ashes visibly mingle and dissolve into the river’s flow. The video invites the audience to feel submerged, flowing alongside these particles, and to connect with a silenced tragedy carried by the water.
Directed by Okyoung Noh
Poem by Kyunghee Kim
Filmed by Okyoung Noh, Ben Zink
Edited by Okyoung Noh
Music by Chien-An Yuan
Installation advised by Joe Rohrer
Voice by Kyunghee Kim, Leah Crosby, Okyoung Noh
The seemingly peaceful river carries faint, almost invisible traces of blood and ashes. As the voice in the video whispers and recites a poem revealing American imperialist violence in Asia, the camera begins to travel underwater, where the blood and ashes visibly mingle and dissolve into the river’s flow. The video invites the audience to feel submerged, flowing alongside these particles, and to connect with a silenced tragedy carried by the water.
Directed by Okyoung Noh
Poem by Kyunghee Kim
Filmed by Okyoung Noh, Ben Zink
Edited by Okyoung Noh
Music by Chien-An Yuan
Installation advised by Joe Rohrer
Voice by Kyunghee Kim, Leah Crosby, Okyoung Noh
Flowing Violence: and be our body, multi-sensory installation
흐르는 폭력: 그리고 한 몸으로, 멀티센서리 설치
a drink dispenser filled with water with hints of iron and smoke, blue gel light filter, fog with scent of blood and ashes. dimensions variable. 2024
The installation component of the work, and be our body (2024), features fog and drinkable water in a fountain which is commonly used in a party or celebration in the United States. Upon entering, the audience feels the fog immediately absorbed into their skin. This fog carries a layered scent of blood, smoke, bullets, and burnt ashes. The audience is encouraged to drink the water, which contains iron supplements and liquid smoke.
The subtle yet palpable hints of violence, represented through different forms of water, surround and circulate within the bodies of the audience – everyday, and therefore, inevitably. In this way, the audience becomes an integral part of the flow, sensing that their bodies are intertwined with the flow of violence.
Installation by Okyoung Noh
Scent layerd by Roland Derin Deschain
Work inspired by a conversation with Seunga You
The subtle yet palpable hints of violence, represented through different forms of water, surround and circulate within the bodies of the audience – everyday, and therefore, inevitably. In this way, the audience becomes an integral part of the flow, sensing that their bodies are intertwined with the flow of violence.
Installation by Okyoung Noh
Scent layerd by Roland Derin Deschain
Work inspired by a conversation with Seunga You
*an excerpt of the poem,
meet me at the water (2024)
Flowing Violence: and be our body, multi-sensory installation
흐르는 폭력: 그리고 한 몸으로, 멀티센서리 설치
a drink dispenser filled with water with hints of iron and smoke, blue gel light filter, fog with scent of blood and ashes, dimensions variable, Dec 2024
<흐르는 폭력 Flowing Violence>은 한국계 미국인 시인 김경희와의 협업으로 제작된 멀티센서리(multi-sensory) 설치 작업이다. 시간과 국경을 초월하는 전지구적 물의 흐름과 연결되어 함께 흐르는 폭력을 다룬다. 한국전쟁 학살 희생자들을 태운 재, 한강에 갓난 아기와 투신하려던 할머니의 피눈물, 그리고 현재 이루어지는 폭력의 현장에서 흐르는 모든 잔여물들이 흘러 ‘우리’의 몸에 닿는 순간을 상상하도록 이끈다.
Flowing Violence (2024) is a multimedia installation made in collaboration with Korean American poet Kyunghee Kim. It invites the audience to imagine how silenced violence may flow with water, reaching the land and the bodies we live in, transcending borders and time.
The average speed of water molecules is around hundred meters per second in an open space. We are 70 percent water and about 98 percent of all the atoms in our body are replaced every year. We are in constant flow. The flow of water, the flow of life, the flow of history, and maybe, the flow of violence.
the blood and ashes of a few hundred civilian refugees, who were massacred by American armies under the No Gun Ri Bridge during the Korean War,
and ‘the tears of blood’ (피눈물) that my grandmother shed, while dragging her two babies to Han River to commit family suicide after the war,
and more
and ‘the tears of blood’ (피눈물) that my grandmother shed, while dragging her two babies to Han River to commit family suicide after the war,
and more
might have been dissolved into the water,
flowing from there to here, from then to now,
taken into our bodies, haunting us,
and be our body
The installation component of the work, and be our body (2024), features fog and drinkable water in a fountain which is commonly used in a party or celebration in the United States. Upon entering, the audience feels the fog immediately absorbed into their skin. This fog carries a layered scent of blood, smoke, bullets, and burnt ashes. The audience is encouraged to drink the water, which contains iron supplements and liquid smoke. These subtle yet palpable hints of violence, represented through different forms of water, surround and circulate within the bodies of the audience – everyday, and therefore, inevitably. In this way, the audience becomes an integral part of the flow, sensing that their bodies are intertwined with the flow of violence.
Installation by Okyoung Noh
Scent layerd by Roland Derin Deschain
Work inspired by a conversation with Seunga You
Scent layerd by Roland Derin Deschain
Work inspired by a conversation with Seunga You
The Land
of the Unanchored. multimedia installation
불화하는 땅. 멀티미디어 설치
sand and clay mixed with the soil from Mrs. Song’s grave, 4-channel audio with 5.1 speakers, 2-channel video with projection, dimensions variable. Oct 2024
This installation explores the lands that Mrs. Song, my deceased North Korean grandmother, lost and desired. I attempt to revisit and sculpt her "land of milk and honey" —which she has never attained—through clay mixed with soil from her grave. The audience moves around small sand hills in the space, which resemble mountainous landscapes in Korea. Four speakers buried in sand whisper stories from those who remember Mrs. Song in different ways, illegible and unanchored.
<불화하는 땅>은 작가의 돌아가신 이북민 할머니, “송씨＂가 잃고 갈망했던 다양한 땅들에 대한 이야기를 송씨의 가족 및 동료 6인과의 인터뷰를 통해서 풀어놓는 멀티미디어 설치이다. 작가는 인터뷰의 내용에 대응하며 송씨의 땅과 몸을 상징하는 점토를 손으로 힘껏 조형한다. 관객은 모래 밑에서 흘러 나오는 오디오에 귀를 기울이며 송씨의 땅을 시각화한 모래 섬들 사이를 떠돌아 다닌다.
photo by Ben Zink