What Happens When You Tell the Truth Through Art | Akira Tsuboi

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Good morning and welcome to the
Holly Hughes Podcast.

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Today my guests are coming from
Busan, South Korea and I'm very

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excited because I personally
have gotten to meet one of them

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a few times in the past and she
made my visit to Korea quite

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memorable and quite personable.
And today we are interviewing

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both Akiratsu Boy, who is an
artist, and Wuhi Choi, who is a

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tour guide and host and our
interpreter for the day.

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So thank you for joining me.
Hello.

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Hello.
Thanks for giving this occasion.

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Yeah, so Akilah is an artist and
I've seen much of your work

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online and I would love to
introduce people to you and your

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work through the story of how
you and Wuhi met.

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Duke, OK was 2018 March 28th,
spring season in Korea.

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And I went to a park which
called the Democracy Park.

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And to go to top I need to pass
the exhibition center and just

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the only two, three steps, then
one picture left on my minds and

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oh, what was that picture?
And I went back and yeah, I saw

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one really touched pictures
about nuclear accidents, which

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it happened in Fukushima and the
problems in Korea too.

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There are many informations
about Fukushima nuclear

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accidents, but everything's
about what someone heard about.

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But under the picture on the on
the floor, there were papers, a

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full size papers, which is about
what is really happening in

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Fukushima.
And the painter and the writer,

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same person, literally he was
was there and interviewing

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victims in Fukushima.
And yeah, during I read the

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papers and one man said, excuse
me, night time.

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That was a like Cage Rama.
You know, it's common in Korea.

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Do you have a handsome artist be
by his work in a park?

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Yes, of course.
That's every day.

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It's every.
Day at that time she wore a very

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tight suit, very stylish person.
So I wonder if I wanted to talk

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this person.
Was your hair long then, or was

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it also short?
The same, yeah.

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She's.
Never changed.

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I know she wears these suits.
It's quite striking.

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Yeah, it's very handful.
My very.

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And he thoughts, Yeah, he
couldn't recognize is she or he.

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And he just to say I need to say
something.

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And yeah, excuse me.
And that's how we met.

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And yeah, the first impression
about him was a long, thin black

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man.
He wore a black jacket.

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It was April, so a bit chilly,
So.

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Yeah, long thing like a pencil.
That's funny.

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How did you get to display your
work?

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Because what I have learned
about exploring Korean history

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is I learned a lot more about
Japanese history beyond the

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beauty.
Japanese are very good at

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showing their beautiful side,
but I think your art exposes the

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other side, like the reality
behind the beauty.

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How are you able to have that
exhibition there in Busan?

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How did that happen?
In fact, there is a Korean

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friend and Korean curators who
offer to have the exhibition.

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In Korea it is not difficult,
but in Japan almost very, very

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difficult.
To do exhibition.

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Yeah, to have an exhibition and
the curator whom I met in Kwanji

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Vienare, many Korean curator
very surprised about my artwork

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and they they feel pleasure that
oh, this Japanese start to

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express what they want.
So quickly we get closer and

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have the exhibition in Brazil.
That's amazing because you

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studied in Tokyo.
Yes, you studied.

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Art in Tokyo, not art.
Not art.

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Yeah, he.
I'm self self-taught artist.

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His major is German literature.
I call him literature boy, city

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boy, Tokyo boy.
I love that, really.

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What made you start?
Did you always draw?

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Yeah, recently, yeah, yeah.
At first when I was 2120, young,

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young wage, I painted basing on
my emotion, just only pure

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emotion.
But after that, gradually I

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wanted to express the other
persons, so needed to go to the

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place and started to listen to
what their experiences.

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After that, I had to check the
historical that techist, you

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know, tech text or how to check
the books and like researchers

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in the gradually present my way,
he emerged.

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Plus the information his father
was newspaper reporter,

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newspaper writer, writer and her
mom studied French literature

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and yes some in the family
education and influence him to

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searching more what is truth and
his personality is more like

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really like a researcher.
He loves researching a lot.

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Me too, me too.
I love that your family also is

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artistic because many or curious
in that way because my father is

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an engineer, my mother is an
artist and I say I have both

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like I love the research, but
then with the information I need

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to express.
I need to.

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Express it and I feel like here
his art is like that too.

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I like the materials he uses and
I'm wondering like what makes

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him choose the wood and the
colour?

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Is there meaning behind that for
him?

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Around my home there is a wood
shop very close to from my home,

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so I could get very cheap paneer
wood panel.

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So I love that I wanted to make
art what around me actually in

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my daily life.
So I started to use wood panel

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but gradually started to making
historical painting and social

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problem painting.
The hood panel has the hood

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layers.
This layer is visibly very nice,

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but actually the layer is the
time layer, so it it matches to

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what I wanted to express.
It's very cool for people who

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might not have seen his art.
You can see like wood grain

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coming through and it adds
dimension to the art.

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It adds for me emotion, right?
I mean, some of the faces that

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you paint you cover, right?
You have their faces not seen or

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so realistic.
And I think that draws you into

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the story of your art, right?
Because again, of your subject

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matters, you tackle tragedies in
a lot of ways, right, Like the

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power plant accident and the
comfort women and some of the

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other things.
So I find you very brave to keep

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to that.
Is it hard artistically to

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always portray that or do you
feel that called to say that or

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the need to share those stories?
There are many very famous

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Japanese artists made this kind
of artwork historical problem or

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the social problem artwork.
I don't need to express, but

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actually in my, in my view, not
sufficient.

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I needed to I needed to be a
Japanese artist who express

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directory.
What is Japanese war, what is

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Japanese war crime and what is
the tragedy precisely regardless

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the beautiness.
Actually I don't want to do that

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but because difficult to find so
I feel I had to paint.

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I don't know what the word would
be, but the like truthiness like

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in the world today, right?
Like what is real or what is

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truth or what is easily
influenced or manipulated.

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Again, what I like about your
art is that it makes you

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confront a truth that people
keep saying no to you use like

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black and white and red I'm
assuming for reasons is there?

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Does it mean something for you?
Actually, I don't have so much

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time to painting.
I have to go to the many places

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and so some color needed to very
long hours to dry it and the

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black and white is not needed.
So this is this is the one of

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the reason I choose the black
and white, Yes, and red, red,

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red means because I started to
about the what is Japan, what is

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Japanese, what is Japanese
culture?

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It it is inevitable to not use
lead because Japanese national

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flag is red, yeah.
That's what I thought watch.

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Like when I looked at it, that's
what I thought I was like, oh,

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it's that very same bread to
bring it together.

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So you have the ability to draw
in when you do actually do your

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portraits.
Like you have that series of

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portraits of women.
I think it's when you were

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highlighting the comfort women
as well as when the imagery with

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them being bit and whatever.
Is there one that is easier to

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paint meaning like it less
emotional or they they represent

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different things?
The first thing to him Fukushima

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nuclear accident makes him like
a trigger and So what Japanese

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government to do and when he saw
what's happening there, they

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don't take any responsibility.
After he drew about Fukushima

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then that connects with history
and it goes to comfort woman and

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even the name comfort woman is
quite bad title in in in simple

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way because it's a sexy slave.
Actually watching deeply into

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Fukushima, I met a nuclear plant
worker.

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He told me that how how he
started to work in Fukushima and

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as a decontaminated worker, he
talked about dispatching

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systems, exploiting systems.
This worked right after the

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Fukushima's accident very, very
quickly after the after the

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explosion from somewhere came to
Fukushima.

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Those who never never minded
losing their life is the typical

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wanted to this kind of this kind
of person and put to the very

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emergency nuclear power plant.
So I it was very why this kind

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of system worked quickly
searching or learning many

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things.
Oh this structure is the false

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labor system committed during
World War.

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There is a guy outside of the
area accidental area.

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This guy gather gather guys
including homeless guy or those

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who have not so much money but
wanted to much money you.

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If you come to Fukushima you get
very big money in per day.

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But this is life.
But being believing his story,

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many guys decided to come to
Fukushima.

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But actually they could not
start the light after that

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coming to Fukushima, these guys
had to waiting, waiting,

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waiting, waiting.
The office manager told them

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please waiting, please waiting
many that time will come.

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But describe these these guys as
believing that they could get

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huge money so choose to stay in
Fukushima using their money.

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And after that they started to
lend money from these offices

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basing on this shocking that
their labor condition getting

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worse and worse and worse and
worse.

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This is the start of
exploitation.

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This is the same to the first
labor system.

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This is the first entrance I
started to see the what Japanese

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society is during World War 20.
This keeps living in different

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names after this was their first
occasion.

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Wow, it's like I I had learned a
little bit like the game Korea

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for the horror, obviously of
comfort women is that they would

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place ads for people to work,
right?

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Like thinking it was a different
job is right.

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Like they fooled you into
becoming a sex slave, which is

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so horrific.
So when I was learning about

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that, I was like, it's crazy to
think like that happens, but it

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did.
And so learning the hard parts

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of our humanity always a
challenge.

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When I visited Busan and you
showed us where the Japanese had

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leveled the town, Busan, all of
Korea's beautiful and

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mountainous and alien, but there
were parts where you let us be

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confronted by what war was.
So I see, I get emotional in

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this part.
So I am Jewish.

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So for me, I very much
identified with being leveled

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and erased.
Great not wanted here being not

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like the same class of citizen
from my grandparents and great

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grandparents stories that I
heard how they escaped.

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My great grandfather was only
one of nine children who got

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out.
The rest of the family is gone.

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So when I see the world today
being so easily confused, I'll

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use that word or misinformed.
I wish we could all take time to

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sit in the things that are hard
and not convenient.

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So I think there is bravery in
your art and in what you show

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because it's a piece of it.
It doesn't mean that everything

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is awful, but because we love
something, it doesn't mean that

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we can't know both sides, the
good and the bad.

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That's I think part of humanity
and I think a carrier art

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explores humanity.
So I'm I'm glad that you are

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always sharing it it I think
that's brave because again, if

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people don't know the Japanese,
Korean history is complicated, A

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long occupation, right?
They you couldn't speak Korean.

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They were trying to erase the
language.

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And yet you two met in two
suits, very handsome people that

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work.
So in your relationship and what

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you do, do you like how does the
being Japanese and Korean come

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together or does it always come
together?

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Actually Uki is not a little bit
strange Korean actually

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actually.
That's because we love her,

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that's why.
Mine is a little different from

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the you know.
The average?

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A little bit different.
I'm afraid to go back to the

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hard story when I exhibited
comfort room painting in Korea,

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an old guy who was a scholar in
Korea.

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If we could speak Japanese, We
talk so much things.

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This guy asked me after watching
my painting.

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Why there is the dark skinned
Egyptian in your comfortable

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story?
Why?

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00:18:46,760 --> 00:18:51,880
It means that this guy did not
know there was a big thing out

229
00:18:51,880 --> 00:18:56,200
of Korea, especially in
Indonesia or Timor arrested.

230
00:18:56,480 --> 00:19:02,000
So it means that also Korean
people tended to focus on the

231
00:19:02,440 --> 00:19:07,560
Korean and the Chinese female
victims story through the public

232
00:19:07,560 --> 00:19:10,920
education.
But I can understand as Korean

233
00:19:10,920 --> 00:19:13,960
focus on the Korean victims,
this is natural.

234
00:19:14,240 --> 00:19:19,120
But actually, as I told you in
my basement, this problem spread

235
00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:28,000
very best in the Asia, Asia.
So she knows that this kind of

236
00:19:28,000 --> 00:19:32,240
the a little bit different
shaped in nationalism.

237
00:19:32,880 --> 00:19:38,440
You know, he recognized that
need to to prevent this kind of

238
00:19:38,440 --> 00:19:44,920
the different type nationalism
need to the watch the precise

239
00:19:45,200 --> 00:19:47,960
size of a precise shape of the
problem.

240
00:19:48,680 --> 00:19:52,800
So in this meeting, a little bit
different, she's different.

241
00:19:54,440 --> 00:19:56,520
Thank you.
But you are.

242
00:19:56,520 --> 00:20:00,440
You're striking.
Meaning very, very pretty when

243
00:20:00,440 --> 00:20:02,040
we meet you, right when I met
you.

244
00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:04,120
Look, he's smiling.
He's like, yeah, she still is.

245
00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:07,360
She's mine.
But what I liked is you showed

246
00:20:07,360 --> 00:20:11,240
so many sides when we were
walking.

247
00:20:11,960 --> 00:20:15,080
Down by the water past the tree
with all the spiders.

248
00:20:15,560 --> 00:20:19,120
But there was there was a house
that I called the tree house

249
00:20:19,120 --> 00:20:21,040
because there's a tree growing
through the middle.

250
00:20:21,160 --> 00:20:23,840
I have no sense of direction.
So I usually have to find an

251
00:20:23,840 --> 00:20:27,480
object to be like that should be
on my right.

252
00:20:27,640 --> 00:20:29,200
So I'm going the right
direction.

253
00:20:29,400 --> 00:20:35,080
But we passed the industrial
like the shops, but and that is

254
00:20:35,400 --> 00:20:37,760
how my father grew up, like when
a plumber.

255
00:20:38,040 --> 00:20:44,200
So like the smells were also
familiar for me and seeing those

256
00:20:44,200 --> 00:20:46,920
shots, I don't know I'd, I felt
like, so I was like, Oh, I, I

257
00:20:46,920 --> 00:20:51,160
know this right.
So for me, like part of why I

258
00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:56,040
think I feel at home in Korea,
even though I'm terrible at the

259
00:20:56,040 --> 00:20:59,920
language and it makes no sense,
there are things there that

260
00:20:59,920 --> 00:21:02,080
speak to my heart good and bad,
right?

261
00:21:02,080 --> 00:21:05,720
Like, oh, I know the feeling of
I want my children to do better,

262
00:21:06,080 --> 00:21:07,240
right?
Right.

263
00:21:07,240 --> 00:21:09,840
Like coming from, I think you
were saying in Busan, they want

264
00:21:09,840 --> 00:21:13,560
their children to be educated
and leave and it's leaving

265
00:21:13,560 --> 00:21:16,840
space.
So are artists filling the

266
00:21:16,840 --> 00:21:19,640
space?
Because if I was in Korea, I

267
00:21:19,640 --> 00:21:22,240
would be like, give me some of
that.

268
00:21:22,240 --> 00:21:29,200
I want that energy in and that,
yeah, like what you see when

269
00:21:29,200 --> 00:21:32,840
you're in that place.
What is that like now?

270
00:21:32,840 --> 00:21:36,040
What's going on there now?
Getting worse.

271
00:21:36,560 --> 00:21:38,760
Is.
It getting worse.

272
00:21:39,640 --> 00:21:43,120
No, no jobs.
That is the biggest problem and

273
00:21:43,120 --> 00:21:49,880
the most biggest industry in
Busan is a shipbuilding and

274
00:21:49,880 --> 00:21:52,200
trade.
And we need a ship, we need to

275
00:21:52,320 --> 00:21:56,760
repair the ship.
But as you know, the war with

276
00:21:56,760 --> 00:22:02,960
Russia and Ukraine and all
things to stop and especially

277
00:22:02,960 --> 00:22:10,080
Yongdo, many ships from bloody
bostocks, they come to here and

278
00:22:10,080 --> 00:22:13,160
buy second hand the ship or
repairing.

279
00:22:13,640 --> 00:22:20,600
But it's hard to keep the works
and the place called Ursan, it

280
00:22:20,600 --> 00:22:23,680
has really big shipyard to
there.

281
00:22:23,840 --> 00:22:28,120
So many workers are moved to
there because they pay a lot

282
00:22:28,360 --> 00:22:31,680
stable.
But in Yongdo is unstable and

283
00:22:31,680 --> 00:22:34,200
that the pay is lower than worse
than.

284
00:22:34,360 --> 00:22:37,000
So you're getting worse and
worse.

285
00:22:37,640 --> 00:22:44,600
And as you see the environment
to there is not good literally

286
00:22:44,600 --> 00:22:47,040
bad condition there really old
house.

287
00:22:47,120 --> 00:22:52,760
It has full many stories about
modern Korean history like in

288
00:22:52,760 --> 00:22:56,520
100 years.
But the story in Korean

289
00:22:56,520 --> 00:23:00,640
expression study stories doesn't
make you full.

290
00:23:01,000 --> 00:23:05,520
We need the rice.
That is the hardest part in

291
00:23:05,720 --> 00:23:10,400
Yongdo, especially full of the
stories because that makes

292
00:23:10,400 --> 00:23:12,720
money.
Pachinko, as you know, it's a

293
00:23:12,720 --> 00:23:19,320
really big, big issue in America
and written in English 1st and

294
00:23:19,320 --> 00:23:25,640
translate into Korean because
the writer is Korean American

295
00:23:26,080 --> 00:23:29,240
and the book start from Yondo my
my place.

296
00:23:29,880 --> 00:23:34,680
But the problem is officers
here, they don't know how to

297
00:23:34,680 --> 00:23:38,480
make money.
That is another sad part.

298
00:23:38,520 --> 00:23:42,200
That's why I'm keep saying we
need the sense.

299
00:23:42,920 --> 00:23:47,000
Do you, Akira, do you think you
can help bring the art scene

300
00:23:47,000 --> 00:23:50,920
there?
Can artists like make a living

301
00:23:50,920 --> 00:23:55,640
there or help revitalize it a
bit?

302
00:23:56,040 --> 00:23:58,720
There are many artists living in
Yondo.

303
00:23:59,560 --> 00:24:02,840
Yeah, I think there is a
possibility in Yondo.

304
00:24:02,840 --> 00:24:08,400
I think actually especially we
are together, as together we can

305
00:24:08,400 --> 00:24:10,880
make something a little bit
different from just only

306
00:24:10,880 --> 00:24:14,440
Japanese or just only Korea.
I think there is a possibility,

307
00:24:15,000 --> 00:24:16,440
yeah.
I think so too.

308
00:24:16,800 --> 00:24:21,480
Yeah, yeah, and full.
Full of a contents actually.

309
00:24:21,640 --> 00:24:27,120
Yeah, there's so many contents
in Yondo and other places, but

310
00:24:27,160 --> 00:24:32,360
it is a little bit very sad to
see the inhabitant could not

311
00:24:32,640 --> 00:24:36,280
find understand the value of the
places.

312
00:24:36,440 --> 00:24:39,880
This is very sad.
So sometimes people came from

313
00:24:39,880 --> 00:24:45,680
outside, started to nice
business, minding their local

314
00:24:45,680 --> 00:24:50,000
history or the specific goodness
in this area.

315
00:24:50,680 --> 00:24:52,840
It is very.
Sad they could see the value.

316
00:24:53,560 --> 00:24:57,440
Yeah.
Through young people, they could

317
00:24:57,440 --> 00:25:03,440
not see the potential of Yondo.
It is very ironical that the

318
00:25:04,680 --> 00:25:11,040
number who get out from this
area, those who born in this

319
00:25:11,040 --> 00:25:17,600
place, Yondo is the number one
young generation go outside this

320
00:25:17,640 --> 00:25:19,400
island.
Very sad.

321
00:25:20,040 --> 00:25:26,720
And my friend told me we love to
the local places or the older

322
00:25:26,720 --> 00:25:32,920
places, but say to me why you go
to this kind of the poor places?

323
00:25:33,200 --> 00:25:39,280
Yeah, I'd want to let people
show our lands poverty, but this

324
00:25:39,280 --> 00:25:43,240
is the regular younger people's
feelings.

325
00:25:43,840 --> 00:25:45,520
Very sad.
It is.

326
00:25:45,520 --> 00:25:48,800
It's pretty.
I think in places I've lived,

327
00:25:49,320 --> 00:25:52,960
those parts of town is where
artists go because they can

328
00:25:52,960 --> 00:25:56,920
afford it, right?
And then it becomes popular

329
00:25:57,000 --> 00:26:02,520
because the artists are there,
and then people buy it, and then

330
00:26:02,520 --> 00:26:07,000
they can't afford it anymore and
it becomes like trendy or

331
00:26:07,000 --> 00:26:10,840
something else.
But it's a mindset of some kind.

332
00:26:11,080 --> 00:26:13,520
But I could feel walking
through, there's just so much

333
00:26:13,520 --> 00:26:17,320
potential there, Yeah.
Yeah, yeah, if I did not meet

334
00:26:17,320 --> 00:26:23,440
her, maybe I quit make artistic
somethings in Japan because no

335
00:26:23,440 --> 00:26:30,560
chances, no reason but meeting
her, she said said to me Akira,

336
00:26:30,560 --> 00:26:36,400
make somethings as outlook of
the Japanese historical program.

337
00:26:36,400 --> 00:26:40,880
Here many Japanese people, there
is a many good minded people and

338
00:26:40,880 --> 00:26:45,880
good minded artists, but because
of not because of losing

339
00:26:45,880 --> 00:26:49,400
chances, they does not come to
this way.

340
00:26:49,760 --> 00:26:54,440
But once I started to step into
here, this kind of relation

341
00:26:54,440 --> 00:27:00,400
started to emerge and I'm very
happy to some Korean artist has

342
00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:04,960
been supporting me and have
exhibition collaborated with the

343
00:27:04,960 --> 00:27:10,280
Korean artist and try to
watching the history precisely

344
00:27:10,480 --> 00:27:15,000
and try to the picking the
common peoples suffering.

345
00:27:15,840 --> 00:27:21,920
So even Japanese artists can't
express in this right way.

346
00:27:22,560 --> 00:27:27,120
So I want to know I want to
Japanese art leave person

347
00:27:28,160 --> 00:27:35,200
watching our activity, focusing
on focusing on Japanese society.

348
00:27:35,720 --> 00:27:41,600
Actually the their imagination
and the mind is pretty closed

349
00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:47,440
and limited the one step out to
especially Korea perfect three

350
00:27:47,440 --> 00:27:52,440
different scene can make.
I have many Japanese friends,

351
00:27:52,520 --> 00:27:57,920
but with a few words we could
tell that they don't know about

352
00:27:57,920 --> 00:28:03,400
their own history, they never
learned about their history, and

353
00:28:03,520 --> 00:28:09,520
we don't want money.
We just want apologize and to

354
00:28:09,520 --> 00:28:14,960
know own history and face the
country's history is really

355
00:28:15,000 --> 00:28:21,640
important to understand me and
my society and it could happen

356
00:28:21,640 --> 00:28:26,480
to me again.
But he was the first Japanese

357
00:28:27,040 --> 00:28:34,400
that with a few words, ah, this
is Japanese know about their

358
00:28:34,400 --> 00:28:39,480
history and that makes me talk
more and more.

359
00:28:40,040 --> 00:28:46,080
And one of his picture is about
65 inch and all together 3

360
00:28:46,520 --> 00:28:53,240
pieces and from far away looks
like it's beautiful Japanese

361
00:28:53,240 --> 00:28:58,120
kimono.
But when you look at the picture

362
00:28:58,240 --> 00:29:05,960
closely, it's about what they
did in Japanese era and some

363
00:29:05,960 --> 00:29:13,200
soldiers breaking clocks and
some soldiers killing people or

364
00:29:13,680 --> 00:29:19,720
experiment like human experiment
or rape the girls.

365
00:29:19,880 --> 00:29:22,680
That picture touched me, like
shocked me.

366
00:29:22,880 --> 00:29:28,400
Oh wow.
And with him, some part I

367
00:29:28,400 --> 00:29:33,920
noticed that I don't know about
my history.

368
00:29:34,440 --> 00:29:38,640
I'm Korean and that makes me
sometimes, oh, I know history

369
00:29:38,640 --> 00:29:45,080
with Japan, Japan and Korea.
But when I see his artwork, I

370
00:29:45,080 --> 00:29:49,880
noticed I don't know I didn't
know about my history.

371
00:29:51,040 --> 00:29:57,880
And some professors, they are 90
years old and he's keep

372
00:29:58,040 --> 00:30:04,720
searching about Maruta, which is
human experiment in China.

373
00:30:04,920 --> 00:30:06,080
Yeah.
Even that one.

374
00:30:06,120 --> 00:30:07,120
Yeah.
Makes me.

375
00:30:07,800 --> 00:30:11,440
I didn't know about what what
was really happening there.

376
00:30:11,560 --> 00:30:19,720
Sometimes we fix our ideas that
oh, I know about this, but

377
00:30:19,720 --> 00:30:21,040
actually not.
We don't.

378
00:30:21,040 --> 00:30:24,520
Yeah.
It's similar again in that

379
00:30:24,840 --> 00:30:30,640
growing up Jewish, I am told
things that other people aren't

380
00:30:30,640 --> 00:30:35,320
told my whole life.
This is our family's history,

381
00:30:35,480 --> 00:30:39,200
this is what we suffered.
These are the things that were

382
00:30:39,200 --> 00:30:42,680
done.
But I forget that the world

383
00:30:42,680 --> 00:30:46,440
isn't taught, that it's not
pleasant, right?

384
00:30:46,920 --> 00:30:50,720
So instead, like, I watch us
become a scapegoat, right?

385
00:30:51,120 --> 00:30:53,120
Oh, you're awful.
You're this, you're that.

386
00:30:53,480 --> 00:30:59,520
And watching history repeat
itself is sometimes madding.

387
00:30:59,560 --> 00:31:04,600
But there's something about the
way I think either, I think

388
00:31:04,600 --> 00:31:07,440
Israelis, they're a little
different, like culturally, but

389
00:31:07,440 --> 00:31:09,800
the way they speak pisses people
off.

390
00:31:10,120 --> 00:31:12,160
And so they can't hear the
message.

391
00:31:12,400 --> 00:31:15,160
But when you're always
defending, you get tired.

392
00:31:15,760 --> 00:31:22,320
What I love about art in both
storytelling in with painting or

393
00:31:22,320 --> 00:31:30,160
sculpture, is you are sharing a
perspective that maybe someone

394
00:31:30,160 --> 00:31:37,520
wouldn't go look for right, but
then are drawn to and it will

395
00:31:37,520 --> 00:31:41,760
stir an emotion.
And I hope that makes them

396
00:31:41,840 --> 00:31:48,680
curious, right?
Like, let me know more what I

397
00:31:48,960 --> 00:31:52,560
what I would hope, because I can
only see your work on a screen

398
00:31:52,560 --> 00:31:54,680
and I know it's much bigger.
I do.

399
00:31:54,680 --> 00:31:59,880
I get emotional about art
because it it matters that voice

400
00:32:00,680 --> 00:32:06,400
matters and how it's shared will
land different for each set of

401
00:32:06,400 --> 00:32:10,040
eyes.
And I think that's why I

402
00:32:10,040 --> 00:32:14,560
dedicated like my podcast to
talking to creative people

403
00:32:14,840 --> 00:32:20,280
because we interpret the world,
we experience it maybe a little

404
00:32:20,280 --> 00:32:27,160
different, and we confront or
express and reflect that which

405
00:32:27,160 --> 00:32:32,920
we have seen or felt back.
I used to think I was helping

406
00:32:32,920 --> 00:32:38,320
people tap into their feelings,
but now I hope I tap into

407
00:32:38,560 --> 00:32:41,640
curiosity.
The world is full of feelings.

408
00:32:41,640 --> 00:32:44,360
Yeah.
You feel something, do

409
00:32:44,360 --> 00:32:46,000
something.
Go.

410
00:32:46,240 --> 00:32:50,560
Go beyond the first sensation,
Right?

411
00:32:50,880 --> 00:32:52,800
I think that's what your art
does.

412
00:32:52,880 --> 00:32:57,520
You're sharing a history that is
not publicized.

413
00:32:58,080 --> 00:33:02,040
So what are you working on?
Like next?

414
00:33:02,040 --> 00:33:06,800
What comes next for you?
I have to keep outlook related

415
00:33:06,800 --> 00:33:09,360
to Japanese and the Japan
society.

416
00:33:10,520 --> 00:33:12,960
I want to make the painting
about.

417
00:33:12,960 --> 00:33:18,840
During World War Two, there was
official high class policies in

418
00:33:18,840 --> 00:33:24,200
Japan in Japanese.
These policies force the people

419
00:33:24,280 --> 00:33:29,760
believe in the Japanese religion
cult.

420
00:33:31,800 --> 00:33:38,120
After the World War 2, this cult
prohibited by GHQ, but people

421
00:33:38,200 --> 00:33:42,080
Japanese people does not even
the name of this cult.

422
00:33:42,160 --> 00:33:47,360
Now they try to burn everything,
but some document is survived

423
00:33:47,400 --> 00:33:54,080
and it become the three boxes.
Reading through the reports made

424
00:33:54,080 --> 00:33:59,280
by these special policies, we
can see what is Japanese society

425
00:33:59,280 --> 00:34:05,600
in the why, including me
Japanese attitudes a little bit

426
00:34:05,600 --> 00:34:10,639
different other countries.
We can see the Japanese cultural

427
00:34:10,639 --> 00:34:15,600
logic through this special
policies document.

428
00:34:15,760 --> 00:34:21,400
I want to make painting about
this so the Tamar is still safe.

429
00:34:22,000 --> 00:34:25,159
Do you think they would like to
display it in Japan too?

430
00:34:25,159 --> 00:34:28,719
Do you think they would?
I'd be so curious.

431
00:34:30,159 --> 00:34:33,320
No, it's hard.
It is hard even in Korea it.

432
00:34:34,239 --> 00:34:34,920
Is hard.
I know you.

433
00:34:35,080 --> 00:34:38,600
He he was in Warsaw.
Your work was right in the

434
00:34:38,600 --> 00:34:41,840
modern art in Warsaw.
In Poland, yeah.

435
00:34:41,920 --> 00:34:45,080
Yeah.
Yeah, many curator come from all

436
00:34:45,080 --> 00:34:49,199
over the world.
I met and talked with and one of

437
00:34:49,199 --> 00:34:54,639
curators what the Varsha Mobar's
curator, he said to be writing.

438
00:34:55,400 --> 00:35:00,240
You are the biggest artist
finding the biggest finding in

439
00:35:00,240 --> 00:35:02,120
this year.
And I want to have the

440
00:35:02,120 --> 00:35:08,160
exhibition in Paravalgia, but
actually at that time was

441
00:35:08,720 --> 00:35:11,320
COVID-19.
So he did.

442
00:35:11,320 --> 00:35:16,320
We copied 1, not the real 1.
OK, that's OK.

443
00:35:16,400 --> 00:35:18,400
That's OK.
It still counts.

444
00:35:18,960 --> 00:35:22,840
Yeah, yeah.
What I wanted to talk is the

445
00:35:23,920 --> 00:35:29,160
until the Christmas paintings in
Japan, many people watching and

446
00:35:29,720 --> 00:35:34,360
communicated with me and
supporting with me your museum

447
00:35:34,360 --> 00:35:39,400
or video people.
But from I started to painting

448
00:35:39,400 --> 00:35:46,920
the comfort room, they never
wanted to together with me.

449
00:35:48,120 --> 00:35:52,000
So at first I sent many mail to
many people.

450
00:35:52,440 --> 00:35:55,480
Let's have the exhibition in
this time in Japan, this is very

451
00:35:55,480 --> 00:35:58,200
important.
But no e-mail came back to me.

452
00:35:59,360 --> 00:36:01,640
No replies, no replies.
I know that feeling.

453
00:36:03,000 --> 00:36:04,440
No reply.
No.

454
00:36:04,640 --> 00:36:07,440
Replies No.
Those people, I had the very

455
00:36:07,560 --> 00:36:13,040
mutual conversation we had in
Kwanju, but actually the

456
00:36:13,360 --> 00:36:18,160
reflection is like this.
It would also be hard, yes, to

457
00:36:18,160 --> 00:36:20,280
bring your art.
I have a vision for you.

458
00:36:20,280 --> 00:36:22,120
Let's see if we can make this
happen.

459
00:36:22,120 --> 00:36:28,320
But I think your art in a a
home, right, like where it would

460
00:36:28,480 --> 00:36:31,360
the home is turned into a
gallery.

461
00:36:31,720 --> 00:36:35,840
That would be amazing because
then you're confronted with both

462
00:36:35,840 --> 00:36:39,680
what's safe and not, and then
you confuse everyone with your

463
00:36:39,680 --> 00:36:44,560
delicious food so that you would
have like this feast in a home.

464
00:36:44,640 --> 00:36:46,480
You have to make this happen.
I'm so excited.

465
00:36:46,480 --> 00:36:51,840
Like if I would, I would help.
I would insult everyone with my

466
00:36:51,840 --> 00:36:55,000
English, but I would, I would I
think that's amazing.

467
00:36:55,000 --> 00:36:59,360
Like with the with the white
wall, the rich history of the

468
00:36:59,360 --> 00:37:04,280
tile and the outside color
confronted with the red and

469
00:37:04,280 --> 00:37:09,200
black and white that you choose
and then this food so all your

470
00:37:09,200 --> 00:37:13,720
senses see touch off.
I'm I'm excited, I'm sweating.

471
00:37:13,720 --> 00:37:15,320
I want to make this happen for
you.

472
00:37:15,320 --> 00:37:18,040
With the with the picture there.
Yeah.

473
00:37:18,160 --> 00:37:21,840
It's OK, but usually our main
food is the seafood.

474
00:37:21,840 --> 00:37:23,720
We really love seafood.
I know.

475
00:37:24,080 --> 00:37:31,040
And imagine there is a really
beautiful and nice seafood front

476
00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:32,280
of you.
Fukushima.

477
00:37:32,280 --> 00:37:34,160
Nuclear accidents.
Yeah.

478
00:37:34,240 --> 00:37:35,760
Paintings.
Can you eat?

479
00:37:37,520 --> 00:37:40,040
But that would be part of the
art, right it?

480
00:37:40,080 --> 00:37:43,560
Becomes what's?
That's why we need to protect

481
00:37:43,800 --> 00:37:46,440
our ocean.
Something or you would have the

482
00:37:46,440 --> 00:37:49,160
food in the other room so they
could go into denial.

483
00:37:49,600 --> 00:37:52,520
You have all the art.
Then you walk into the room and

484
00:37:52,520 --> 00:37:54,840
it smells so good and they're
like, oh, look what I can do.

485
00:37:54,840 --> 00:37:58,200
That's such a play on how we
live.

486
00:37:58,680 --> 00:38:02,000
We see it, we ignore it, and
then we're going to eat the

487
00:38:02,000 --> 00:38:04,320
yummy food.
I think, oh, my God.

488
00:38:04,360 --> 00:38:07,200
I think that is a cool.
Is that very important?

489
00:38:07,240 --> 00:38:09,080
I don't know.
I'm very.

490
00:38:09,080 --> 00:38:11,640
I just started shouting.
I'm so excited.

491
00:38:11,720 --> 00:38:14,120
I just, I want to make that
happen.

492
00:38:14,120 --> 00:38:15,280
I really want to make that
happen.

493
00:38:15,280 --> 00:38:17,360
I know that.
Do you both belong to the same

494
00:38:17,360 --> 00:38:19,320
church?
Because I know your church is

495
00:38:19,320 --> 00:38:20,480
important, too.
Yeah.

496
00:38:21,000 --> 00:38:27,040
So how does that faith come into
your work as well to support you

497
00:38:27,080 --> 00:38:29,560
or encourage you?
I would love to know.

498
00:38:29,880 --> 00:38:32,080
Yeah, definitely.
He wasn't Christian.

499
00:38:32,280 --> 00:38:36,240
I wasn't Christian.
And when I was 20 I became

500
00:38:36,240 --> 00:38:41,880
Christian the first met and
after one year he sent me text.

501
00:38:41,880 --> 00:38:46,920
Can you dating with me?
And I said no, just to be

502
00:38:46,920 --> 00:38:48,960
friends.
But he's a smart guy.

503
00:38:48,960 --> 00:38:54,720
He knew it why I rejected.
And I recommended him to read

504
00:38:55,080 --> 00:38:59,000
the book Mere Christianity,
written by Cesar Lewis.

505
00:38:59,480 --> 00:39:04,040
And yeah, in Tokyo.
But you ordered on the Internet.

506
00:39:04,840 --> 00:39:08,960
Yeah, yeah, yeah, he ordered.
And after he finished it, he

507
00:39:08,960 --> 00:39:12,560
said I think I need to read the
Bible in person.

508
00:39:13,280 --> 00:39:18,360
And he bought the Bible, but he
finished it in Tenmouth and he

509
00:39:18,360 --> 00:39:22,560
became Christian.
We can tell he's real Christian

510
00:39:22,560 --> 00:39:26,920
or not and not the not the fake
one.

511
00:39:28,680 --> 00:39:31,720
I understand.
Yeah, and that makes us.

512
00:39:32,360 --> 00:39:37,480
I can live together.
We engaged and marry and yeah,

513
00:39:37,480 --> 00:39:44,480
we go to same church every
Sunday and we every day we share

514
00:39:44,720 --> 00:39:47,880
Bible, we praying before we go
to bed.

515
00:39:47,880 --> 00:39:53,960
Me too.
Every Yeah, Really, really

516
00:39:53,960 --> 00:39:57,040
thankful.
Yeah, that's how I end my day,

517
00:39:57,080 --> 00:40:00,840
with gratitude.
Because the blessing actually

518
00:40:00,840 --> 00:40:06,440
praying could pray every day.
Yeah, I think for me, I think I

519
00:40:06,480 --> 00:40:09,800
thank for the day and what I
have and I ask to be better, a

520
00:40:09,800 --> 00:40:13,240
better person tomorrow.
Like that's how I end my day.

521
00:40:13,240 --> 00:40:19,160
That's how I.
Feel it The main point of my As

522
00:40:19,160 --> 00:40:22,320
I said, my artwork is very hard
work.

523
00:40:22,520 --> 00:40:26,840
The main point is the repentance
career.

524
00:40:27,640 --> 00:40:28,880
Confess.
Confess.

525
00:40:30,320 --> 00:40:34,280
Oh.
Japanese people, he does not

526
00:40:34,280 --> 00:40:38,840
know about the confession.
Comparing German government, how

527
00:40:38,840 --> 00:40:43,680
to deal with their war crime,
they confessed their war crime.

528
00:40:44,480 --> 00:40:46,720
Of course, there is a problem in
German too.

529
00:40:47,120 --> 00:40:51,520
But Japanese people does not
know about the confession.

530
00:40:52,840 --> 00:40:56,040
So this is very important for
Japanese.

531
00:40:56,720 --> 00:41:02,120
The Japanese people the mind
mind about the about guilty or

532
00:41:02,120 --> 00:41:05,360
sin is completely different from
the confession.

533
00:41:05,440 --> 00:41:09,640
Japanese people believe that
there is no confession, there is

534
00:41:09,640 --> 00:41:15,040
no way to waiting time in the
erasing waiting, erasing this

535
00:41:15,480 --> 00:41:22,000
after this erasing time, it is
good person who does not about

536
00:41:22,200 --> 00:41:28,280
refer to the guilty anymore.
But so Japanese public

537
00:41:28,320 --> 00:41:34,440
education, historical education,
textbook, textbook reducing,

538
00:41:34,440 --> 00:41:37,600
reducing day by day, year by
year.

539
00:41:38,240 --> 00:41:43,520
So this is very dangerous of
Japanese culture and the people

540
00:41:43,520 --> 00:41:47,520
around Japan.
Why Japanese people move like

541
00:41:47,520 --> 00:41:53,080
this, You know, once apologize,
but after that denying the

542
00:41:53,160 --> 00:41:57,360
involvement.
So oh Japanese, what is the

543
00:41:57,360 --> 00:42:02,200
apologize We can understand this
is the actually many Korean

544
00:42:02,200 --> 00:42:05,760
people's feeling against
Japanese government attitude.

545
00:42:06,240 --> 00:42:12,160
So I think it is very hard to
very bad things Japanese

546
00:42:12,160 --> 00:42:17,920
government committed precisely.
But because there is the way of

547
00:42:17,920 --> 00:42:23,000
confession to start to to get
reborn.

548
00:42:23,080 --> 00:42:28,040
We need to there is just only
way to confess for Japanese, I

549
00:42:28,040 --> 00:42:32,640
think, and I'm very happy to
meet, meet, meet her and become

550
00:42:32,640 --> 00:42:36,480
Christian without become
becoming Christianity.

551
00:42:36,560 --> 00:42:42,960
There is the impossible to
understand techist in Hiroshima.

552
00:42:43,760 --> 00:42:48,200
In Hiroshima there is a monument
in this monument there is a

553
00:42:48,200 --> 00:42:55,360
techist written like this.
We never repeat this mistakes.

554
00:42:55,600 --> 00:43:00,360
Please rest in peace.
But Japanese people cannot

555
00:43:00,360 --> 00:43:05,840
understand what is guilty.
We Japanese did nothing guilty

556
00:43:06,520 --> 00:43:09,600
but once becoming a
Christianity.

557
00:43:10,240 --> 00:43:14,440
I can read this meaning and also
why?

558
00:43:15,080 --> 00:43:18,960
Why?
How Tenno and the Tenno family

559
00:43:18,960 --> 00:43:22,920
communicated with the GHQ and
Americans.

560
00:43:23,320 --> 00:43:25,080
Do you know the meaning of the
Tenno?

561
00:43:25,080 --> 00:43:26,480
Emperor.
Emperor.

562
00:43:26,800 --> 00:43:30,760
Japanese Emperor.
Emperor, and even now the

563
00:43:31,680 --> 00:43:39,240
Emperor's son goes to Great
Britain and studied in the UKUK.

564
00:43:40,040 --> 00:43:46,720
This shows we can see that 10 no
have to lead learn about that

565
00:43:47,000 --> 00:43:51,000
not Japanese culture including
confession.

566
00:43:51,000 --> 00:43:57,320
I think this is my opinion.
But after this recognition we

567
00:43:57,320 --> 00:44:00,120
Japanese can understand our
constitution.

568
00:44:00,600 --> 00:44:04,920
In the constitution, the 1st 1st
chapter is about 10 no.

569
00:44:05,320 --> 00:44:11,760
And the 1st chapter say that
Emperor is the Japan and the

570
00:44:11,760 --> 00:44:15,840
Japanese people symbol.
And at first we could not

571
00:44:16,200 --> 00:44:22,240
understand, but learning about
the Teno, Japanese people does

572
00:44:22,240 --> 00:44:27,400
not know about confession.
But as the representative Teno

573
00:44:27,920 --> 00:44:30,760
went to many places just only
apologizing.

574
00:44:30,960 --> 00:44:33,760
This is apologizing voyage he
did.

575
00:44:34,360 --> 00:44:38,040
This was, I think, his
expression of the confession,

576
00:44:38,120 --> 00:44:43,160
but there is no people
describing like this.

577
00:44:43,600 --> 00:44:46,240
So Christianity is very big for
me.

578
00:44:46,560 --> 00:44:49,000
I like that, thank you for
sharing that.

579
00:44:49,000 --> 00:44:54,400
Because it's personal, right?
And as an American audience or

580
00:44:54,520 --> 00:44:59,640
culturally, not understanding
how apology or a confession

581
00:44:59,640 --> 00:45:03,240
isn't part right of your
culture.

582
00:45:04,560 --> 00:45:10,880
Interesting.
When I meet European customers,

583
00:45:11,280 --> 00:45:17,600
I always say as Asian
perspective, perspective, even

584
00:45:17,600 --> 00:45:23,640
you are not Christian, your
culture, your country, history

585
00:45:23,680 --> 00:45:29,400
and culture based with
Christianity on the Bible.

586
00:45:30,040 --> 00:45:35,160
It means a lot.
Like there is good and the bad

587
00:45:36,760 --> 00:45:42,320
and there is a good and the next
justice, then law.

588
00:45:43,960 --> 00:45:48,200
There is a book law and justice
but actually justice says first

589
00:45:48,320 --> 00:45:52,280
then law and the foundation is
good.

590
00:45:52,280 --> 00:45:56,120
What is good?
The Bible said God is good.

591
00:45:56,880 --> 00:46:01,560
So what is God?
Bible says God is word.

592
00:46:02,400 --> 00:46:07,880
So we need to read and
understand and praying to to

593
00:46:07,880 --> 00:46:14,720
understand and to follow the
Goddess word in Korea, Korea

594
00:46:14,920 --> 00:46:18,120
period and Josan period in
Korea.

595
00:46:18,120 --> 00:46:21,840
In the Korea back then, the
religion was Buddhism.

596
00:46:22,560 --> 00:46:28,840
So the the country's law base
with the Buddhism, but Josan

597
00:46:28,840 --> 00:46:36,680
period was Confucianism.
It's based with Confucianism but

598
00:46:37,280 --> 00:46:44,280
Europe and America is Bible so
even you are not Christian.

599
00:46:44,280 --> 00:46:48,760
You said you are not Christian
but think about your

600
00:46:49,280 --> 00:46:53,040
circumstance, environment,
everything based with

601
00:46:53,040 --> 00:46:57,160
Christianity like human where is
the word comes from?

602
00:46:58,720 --> 00:47:05,400
Like in Buddhism base or chosen
period base, if you show even

603
00:47:05,400 --> 00:47:10,360
me, think about me showing my
face, bare face, how dare you?

604
00:47:11,200 --> 00:47:15,040
No way.
And how dare you, you cut your

605
00:47:15,040 --> 00:47:20,520
hair right?
So it means for a lot.

606
00:47:20,800 --> 00:47:22,560
Really a lot.
I do.

607
00:47:22,800 --> 00:47:28,600
I also think American history is
so short compared to Asia.

608
00:47:28,600 --> 00:47:32,400
You're right.
Just I think part of me trying

609
00:47:32,400 --> 00:47:37,200
to educate myself is that I know
so little.

610
00:47:37,560 --> 00:47:42,360
So I am willing to listen and
watch, right?

611
00:47:42,440 --> 00:47:46,040
And then try to understand as
much as possible.

612
00:47:46,040 --> 00:47:50,760
I think my understanding of
Japanese cultures, it has always

613
00:47:50,760 --> 00:47:55,600
been, I don't know the right
word, pride, like proud.

614
00:47:56,120 --> 00:48:01,040
And there is what you see, and
there must be a world inside

615
00:48:01,040 --> 00:48:05,440
that we never know inside the
mind or heart, because what is

616
00:48:05,920 --> 00:48:09,240
accepted or not, right?
Every culture has that.

617
00:48:09,240 --> 00:48:12,000
But as you were saying, what is
that based on?

618
00:48:12,560 --> 00:48:17,560
I find learning more about it
confusing because I thought it

619
00:48:17,560 --> 00:48:20,600
was so beautiful.
I just thought it was also

620
00:48:20,600 --> 00:48:21,920
beautiful.
How?

621
00:48:22,520 --> 00:48:27,400
I don't know what a monoculture
is like in America.

622
00:48:27,400 --> 00:48:31,440
There's so many people.
My family very intermarried,

623
00:48:31,440 --> 00:48:34,760
right?
So I always take a person as

624
00:48:34,760 --> 00:48:39,120
they appear and I want to get to
know them and who they are and

625
00:48:39,120 --> 00:48:42,760
learn more.
And when you when I was like

626
00:48:42,760 --> 00:48:45,840
travelling, I have not been to
Japan or or China or anything,

627
00:48:45,840 --> 00:48:48,440
but like when I was in Korea,
what part?

628
00:48:48,840 --> 00:48:52,920
What I partly liked was the
monoculture in that there are

629
00:48:52,920 --> 00:48:56,560
rules in society that are
standard.

630
00:48:56,800 --> 00:49:01,680
This is standard behavior.
Do not be stupid.

631
00:49:02,120 --> 00:49:05,400
Like that's my right.
But you know, honor your elders

632
00:49:05,400 --> 00:49:09,640
or this is your quiet here and
it's a standard.

633
00:49:09,640 --> 00:49:14,000
And even though maybe standards
aren't always comfortable, they

634
00:49:14,000 --> 00:49:19,040
do bring you to a common space.
And I, I wish there was a little

635
00:49:19,040 --> 00:49:21,440
bit more of that in the world,
right?

636
00:49:21,960 --> 00:49:28,320
In Japan, usually Japanese
cannot have the occasion to have

637
00:49:28,320 --> 00:49:33,280
conversation with Jewish or
Muslim or Christian or black or

638
00:49:33,840 --> 00:49:38,880
many many type of non Japanese
people to all, including Korea,

639
00:49:39,720 --> 00:49:44,280
this type of Korean.
It is strange that in Japanese

640
00:49:44,560 --> 00:49:49,840
media, let's think about the
present Korean society today is

641
00:49:49,840 --> 00:49:53,480
the representation is the
Japanese top level Korean

642
00:49:53,520 --> 00:49:57,080
specialist university.
But this guy is Japanese.

643
00:49:57,680 --> 00:50:00,600
The Japanese and Japanese talk
about the Korean society.

644
00:50:01,240 --> 00:50:07,400
The this is that no meaning.
There is just only the Japanese,

645
00:50:07,920 --> 00:50:12,560
Japanese word.
It is important to know our

646
00:50:12,600 --> 00:50:18,480
culture's people's talking, know
our culture's people's logic to

647
00:50:18,480 --> 00:50:20,920
know.
So this is a very important.

648
00:50:21,640 --> 00:50:28,480
So when I was in university, I
tried to read the Bible, but I

649
00:50:28,480 --> 00:50:35,240
could not every time I stopped
in in after the Egypt, you know,

650
00:50:35,560 --> 00:50:41,000
very tiny things wrapping up and
making it bold with this size,

651
00:50:41,480 --> 00:50:45,920
using this materials, you know,
these pieces, pieces, pieces,

652
00:50:45,920 --> 00:50:51,120
pieces, pieces.
I could not but the experiencing

653
00:50:51,120 --> 00:50:56,320
Fukushima I had to know
precisely these doctors write

654
00:50:56,880 --> 00:51:02,240
what they wrote and what they
talk what is what is these

655
00:51:02,240 --> 00:51:07,400
differences.
So even even very difficult to

656
00:51:07,400 --> 00:51:12,320
read through, but I had to read
through their this their logic

657
00:51:12,680 --> 00:51:17,120
to understand.
So Bible is like this.

658
00:51:17,320 --> 00:51:22,720
Once I started to Bible I found
that my image is completely

659
00:51:22,720 --> 00:51:28,240
different from actual Bible
saying and also this this can

660
00:51:28,320 --> 00:51:32,880
apply to the story.
At first I thought that this

661
00:51:32,880 --> 00:51:37,680
problem was limited to the
Korean in China and N Koreans

662
00:51:38,160 --> 00:51:42,160
and Taiwan.
But actual is completely

663
00:51:42,160 --> 00:51:49,880
different.
So listen to the the the text or

664
00:51:49,880 --> 00:51:54,000
voices outside of me is very
important.

665
00:51:55,480 --> 00:51:58,720
And this applied to also in
ourself.

666
00:51:59,400 --> 00:52:04,120
The the Japanese world is
completely changed before World

667
00:52:04,120 --> 00:52:08,280
War 2 or 100 years ago and
present.

668
00:52:08,680 --> 00:52:13,640
So without learning how to read
Japanese, ancient Japanese, it

669
00:52:13,640 --> 00:52:15,760
is different, completely
different culture.

670
00:52:16,560 --> 00:52:22,800
But we needed to this as a
craft, not our culture, but our

671
00:52:22,800 --> 00:52:29,040
culture like this.
I tend to put put writing words

672
00:52:29,080 --> 00:52:34,600
in my painting.
So I think as artists, very

673
00:52:34,600 --> 00:52:41,960
interesting that many artists
try to put artists themselves

674
00:52:42,080 --> 00:52:48,200
into the society limitation.
But if there is need to express

675
00:52:48,280 --> 00:52:55,640
out of this social limitation,
if we once express the out out

676
00:52:55,680 --> 00:52:59,440
of society, this society, how to
react?

677
00:52:59,640 --> 00:53:06,160
This is very interesting and
Japanese people love to to

678
00:53:07,040 --> 00:53:12,000
calculate and the Japanese
people love to together, but

679
00:53:12,320 --> 00:53:17,240
also outside of this together
things is sometimes neat.

680
00:53:17,560 --> 00:53:22,040
When I talking with the
Japanese, I noticed that

681
00:53:22,120 --> 00:53:28,080
geography is really important
because Japanese island so I

682
00:53:28,120 --> 00:53:36,600
isolated so their history like
have attack or became victim or

683
00:53:36,600 --> 00:53:41,080
attacked.
It happens in Japan, not from

684
00:53:41,080 --> 00:53:46,680
outside of Japan but Korea is
always connected with other

685
00:53:46,680 --> 00:53:48,520
countries.
We never attack someone.

686
00:53:49,160 --> 00:53:51,800
So need to see what is happening
there.

687
00:53:52,520 --> 00:53:57,000
We are tiny country, small
countries, so balance always

688
00:53:57,000 --> 00:54:01,280
need a balance.
It's next to us, it's really big

689
00:54:01,280 --> 00:54:04,040
country there.
So need to read what is

690
00:54:04,040 --> 00:54:08,600
happening there.
But Japan never experienced

691
00:54:08,600 --> 00:54:11,360
about that.
Even now, Japanese history

692
00:54:11,360 --> 00:54:16,160
doesn't tell connections with
other countries.

693
00:54:16,880 --> 00:54:20,480
That's true.
It's very insular, insular and

694
00:54:20,480 --> 00:54:25,800
echo They they get to be like I
I get Edo like period, like

695
00:54:26,040 --> 00:54:29,080
different war, but all within
the same country.

696
00:54:30,240 --> 00:54:33,360
That's that's a good point, but
I think again, that's what makes

697
00:54:33,960 --> 00:54:41,480
hit his art so relevant in that
he is exposing and sharing that

698
00:54:41,680 --> 00:54:48,840
confession, that apology, like
when someone's been hurt, if a

699
00:54:48,840 --> 00:54:54,360
person can apologize, at least
acknowledge that was not good.

700
00:54:54,720 --> 00:54:59,400
Like you might not be able to
find the right words, but it's a

701
00:54:59,400 --> 00:55:04,000
start and that can change.
I think that can change the

702
00:55:04,000 --> 00:55:07,880
world, honestly.
Like it doesn't feel good when

703
00:55:07,880 --> 00:55:12,400
you make a mistake, right?
Whatever that is, and especially

704
00:55:12,400 --> 00:55:16,800
if you don't think it was.
So I'm sometimes I wonder if

705
00:55:16,800 --> 00:55:21,280
that is like the mindset.
So I like that something

706
00:55:21,280 --> 00:55:26,640
beautiful like an artwork can be
the start.

707
00:55:27,280 --> 00:55:32,320
And then what happens is up to
everyone who sees it.

708
00:55:32,360 --> 00:55:35,840
I I love that.
It is very exciting.

709
00:55:36,240 --> 00:55:42,120
You know, this is the Japanese
society in this in this limited

710
00:55:42,120 --> 00:55:48,280
boxes my expression they don't
they does not want to but needed

711
00:55:48,280 --> 00:55:51,640
to express.
So outside of Japanese society,

712
00:55:52,000 --> 00:55:57,160
there is my my artwork.
So if express this what's

713
00:55:57,160 --> 00:56:00,680
happened, watching this is very
exciting, I think.

714
00:56:01,600 --> 00:56:07,480
Like one day he said can he
apologize is a bit different

715
00:56:07,480 --> 00:56:15,760
with other country when they
when we say sorry means we not

716
00:56:15,760 --> 00:56:21,400
gonna death again.
But he said Japanese is more

717
00:56:21,400 --> 00:56:27,280
like when they say sorry means
it became 0 so could do a game.

718
00:56:27,560 --> 00:56:29,720
I love that.
Well, that is great.

719
00:56:29,720 --> 00:56:32,120
For my last question of the
interview.

720
00:56:32,440 --> 00:56:35,680
I love it, dude.
Like if you came with a warning

721
00:56:35,680 --> 00:56:38,720
label, I want to know both of
you because I think you're both

722
00:56:38,720 --> 00:56:41,800
fascinating.
What would it be like?

723
00:56:41,800 --> 00:56:45,160
What would people need to know
about you if they could?

724
00:56:45,160 --> 00:56:48,480
In a little box, he's like you
go first.

725
00:56:49,160 --> 00:56:51,640
You go first.
I think here is very funny.

726
00:56:51,640 --> 00:56:54,600
I like watching his eyes think
I'm watching his.

727
00:56:54,840 --> 00:56:57,280
He's always thinking and I was
like, oh, I wish I could speak

728
00:56:57,280 --> 00:57:00,880
Japanese because I could get so
much more thoughtful.

729
00:57:00,880 --> 00:57:03,080
I see why you are both together.
I could.

730
00:57:03,120 --> 00:57:06,040
See, he works.
Very well, you don't have to be

731
00:57:06,040 --> 00:57:07,520
serious.
You can joke.

732
00:57:07,520 --> 00:57:10,880
I'm funny sometimes.
But like my warning label is, I

733
00:57:10,880 --> 00:57:13,840
will talk about Korea because
I'm in love with Korea right

734
00:57:13,840 --> 00:57:16,240
now.
So you know your warning label

735
00:57:16,240 --> 00:57:21,760
is.
Curiosity, yeah, that is the

736
00:57:21,760 --> 00:57:26,000
most important thing for me.
I think so too.

737
00:57:26,640 --> 00:57:31,680
I want, I want to, I want to New
Japan, lovely Japan, you know,

738
00:57:32,680 --> 00:57:36,520
basically would love New Japan.
No, no need to summarize, mind.

739
00:57:36,800 --> 00:57:37,600
No need.
No need.

740
00:57:38,320 --> 00:57:41,920
Summarize mind.
No need to summarize.

741
00:57:42,000 --> 00:57:47,480
OK, Yeah, I like that.
Are you in a gallery now?

742
00:57:47,480 --> 00:57:50,400
In Busan, will you?
Or where do you want people to

743
00:57:50,400 --> 00:57:53,120
find your art online?
Instagram.

744
00:57:53,560 --> 00:57:55,800
Instagram Follow Akira on
Instagram.

745
00:57:55,800 --> 00:57:57,520
We'll have that.
One, yeah.

746
00:57:58,560 --> 00:58:01,600
To see your work.
I want to see Airbnb.

747
00:58:02,560 --> 00:58:05,160
Oh yeah, And if you want to
visit Luzon, we'll have that

748
00:58:05,160 --> 00:58:06,680
too.
Reach out and do.

749
00:58:06,680 --> 00:58:09,680
And your food, I don't know if
you give everyone those yummy

750
00:58:09,680 --> 00:58:13,280
food tours, but I will be back
in 2020 eleven.

751
00:58:13,720 --> 00:58:17,000
I need a little more time to
save some money, but I plan on

752
00:58:17,000 --> 00:58:20,440
being there longer next time.
Thank you for being part of the

753
00:58:20,440 --> 00:58:22,360
Holly Hughes podcast.
Thank you for joining me.

754
00:58:22,360 --> 00:58:24,160
I know it's very late at night
by you it.

755
00:58:24,400 --> 00:58:29,440
Was really, really wonderful and
yeah, we really honor to with

756
00:58:29,440 --> 00:58:29,720
you.