Self-portrait: Life's Passage
Instead of emphasizing the individuality contained in his inner self, Sijong Kim would express self-portrait videos with self-mocking views. The aim is to include ridiculous, weak, mechanical, and instinctive side of himself via third party’s view. This work is his life’s journey, the way of his life, and also a dialogue inside himself. It could be stories of unspecified individuals.
#1. Running
2015, 00:41 min., Digital colour video
My life goes to somewhere. Though it is moving hard into my subjective will, the scenery seems to be the same. Moving forward until exhausted, without knowing the goal, might be the appearance of ourselves. Finally in the end, I return to the starting point as I fall down.
#2. Dove and Baguette
2015, 01:32 min., Digital colour video
One day in a park, two doves that were eating foods zealously looked as my appearance. Eating to survive, doing productive activities to eat. Heartily eating, I cannot figure out my true appearance of myself. On the back side of eating baguette leisurely in a park, there lies a weak and inhuman figure of myself who disremembers the purpose of eating and the personality of myself.
#3. Between Trees
2015, 00:32 min., Digital colour video
There are many parties that I belong to. There are spaces beyond number that I joined via on-line, in addition to offline groups. Expressing different characters depending on what group I am in, makes difficult to tell the original character of myself. In places that are enveloping me, I keep on moving here and there hardly. Some of them question about the world outside. Some walk just forward. Some walks with doubts. One of them shows a curiosity of the outside world, as if this world is a lie.
#4. Questions
2015, 01:32 min., Digital colour video
Different looks of myself keep on coming on the floor, harassing me. They pester me with questions if I am on the right track. It is hard to tell where they come from. After feeling self-accusation, I follow the sounds of my reflections. It is a choice that has no guarantee if it is right or wrong.
#5. Chase
2015, 00:43 min., Digital colour video
I portray myself continuously. There are various looks of myself that appear and disappear like a mirage. My daily life is like a hide-and-seek between myself in the real world and in my imagination.
#6. In the Woods
2015, 00:35 min., Digital colour video
A self-portrait that I imagine seems to walk slowly towards the front, however recedes rapidly in the twinkle of an eye. I feel a separation between my present self and my former self faraway.