​This is a painting I drew during a brief Night Heron Watercolor meeting today. This painting is in preparation for Millspond Gallery’s new opening call.
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​To prepare for this painting, I had to introduce the nature surrounding us in Long Island, surrounded by water.

​And more than anything, it was important to determine which part of Long Island I was most attached to. I like Sand Street Beach more than any other place.

So I often drew this quiet Sand Street Beach before.

​More than anything, I like to take a walk here when my mind is complicated and I need to organize my thoughts. It is a lonely and mysterious place where there is nothing except a small red-roofed duck hunting shed at the corner of the beach.

​This time, I'm going to draw a beautiful picture using watercolors to introduce the feeling of this quiet and mysterious place to people who know nothing about Long Island.

​Starting this week, my students have been drawing pictures for National Wind Energy Art. The process of preparing these pictures is educational and meaningful. Above all, it has the advantage of not just drawing pictures, but also learning about clean energy and windmill principles.

​When students first draw a picture with the concept of wind energy art, they will first think of a windmill spinning powerfully in a field. My students also drew a windmill towering over a beautiful landscape.

​In Sophia's case, a girl wearing a mask created a meaningful view of the windmill. It is impressive to see a hot air balloon in the distance.

We will develop these pictures further. And you will learn how to create meaningful images with a single concept.

​Recently, there has been a movement in Korea to reevaluate President Syngman Rhee, Korea's first president. Although this kind of initiative has been made before by conservative groups or politicians, I think it was director Kim Deok-young's documentary film ‘The Birth of Korea’ that aroused national interest. I agree with some of the claims made in this documentary. Above all, I also acknowledge that the facts I learned before were distorted or exaggerated without any actual basis, so I think evidence-based history education is now necessary in the future. For example, when I looked at the theory of evacuation during the Korean War, which was seen as First President Syngman Rhee's biggest mistake, based on actual objective photos and data, I discovered that what I had previously learned was nothing more than a rumor.

And based on this objective basis, I think that all data should be opened in a balanced manner without being biased to one side. This is because the massacre of civilians due to excessive anti-communist policies and the chaos of the times is also objective data that cannot be erased. Therefore, I think there should be no perfect praise or forced understanding or interpretation. In this sense, I am politically neutral and have no color whatsoever.

When I lived in Korea, I was always forced to choose which side to be on. There are many different stories about these experiences, from family to society. And no matter what group you were in, if you didn't have your own color, you were ostracized and ignored. Because of this experience, I still get nervous when I say something that is different from what the majority of people in the group think.

However, it is not a positive experience because I think it infringes too much on personal freedom to have to worry about these colors. This is because the article I am writing now will also be misunderstood or criticized by people on the other side. Therefore, I first wrote down my political stance. More than anything, I like to remain in the center because I have a variety of experiences in politics about how individuals are exploited, used, and incited for the benefit of political parties. This is because when I have one political side, I am no longer in a position to talk about the good points of the other side. The political tone and stance I experienced in Korea was exclusive and totalitarian. I hope this will change in a more positive way.

For instance, I do not praise President Syngman Rhee due to personal experience, but I like the code of humanity in the director's previous film, ‘Children of Kim Il-sung,’ and the questions, spirit, and attitude as an artist contained therein. And most of all, I like director Kim Deok-young’s attitude as a solo director and creator.

'Adapting to the trends of the times, such as the ‘one-person media’ and ‘one-person creation era’, also helped greatly in making this film available in theaters. If everything were done in a specialized organizational system, not only would it be expensive, but it would not be easy to complete in terms of time as well. If the director can do almost everything himself, the cost reduction is maximized and the speed is rapidly increased. In today's rapidly changing society, being able to do things on your own has a powerful force that allows you to quickly accept changes in reality and push forward with your work. Excerpt from director Kim Deok-young’s brunch story’

After watching his film ‘Kim Il-sung’s Children,’ I was able to discover the hidden code of a director who was concerned about humanity, the meaning of life, and, above all, what is valuable, through discoveries made not through the products but through the process of 15 years. He looked at the world through the framework of humanities and discovered common emotions hidden in people's hearts. And considering this as ‘value’, he is writing and making films for documentaries. I think that sometimes those values can be very personal and subjective. That is why the world can oppress  individuals who have different ‘values’ than themselves.

What I don't agree a kind of totalitarianism. This is a situation where individual freedom, value, and dignity are ignored, not respected, and even obliterated. I am extremely concerned about this situation. And in the dark times of my life, there were times when my personal value, freedom, and dignity were ignored. I drew pictures during those lonely and painful moments. Painting was the only way I could feel my worth and express myself. Everyone expresses their worth and dignity in this way.
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​“Kim Il-sung’s Children” (English: KIM IL SUNG’s Children) is a South Korean film released in 2020 to mark the 70th anniversary of the Korean War. This work is composed of historical data and survivors' testimonies that allow us to objectively understand the process of forming the North Korean system during the Cold War through the unique subject of the migration of North Korean war orphans to Eastern Europe after the Korean War in the 1950s. From 1950 to 1953, the Korean War created 100,000 war orphans in both South and North Korea. At a time when they did not even have the ability to heal the wounds of war, South and North Korea dealt with the issue of war orphans in different ways. While South Korean war orphans immigrated to Europe and the United States through a method called ‘international adoption,’ North Korean war orphans were dispersed and adopted in various Eastern European countries. It was called local ‘consignment education.’

As a result, between 5,000 and 10,000 North Korean war orphans lived in unfamiliar places in Eastern Europe, such as Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, and Hungary, for 10 years. This story is a record of their hidden lives.

​Above all, through this film, I was able to pay attention to ‘love for humanity’, which is more universal and stronger than any ideology or belief. Even though their borders, cultures, and races are different, they all feel the common emotions of ‘longing and love.’ Perhaps it is because of this ‘longing and memory’ that they do not give up their last hope even at the moment when they have to accept the reality that they can now keep in touch and never meet again.

​This movie is also introduced as a book.

‘A special train carrying North Korean war orphans transported the children to unknown cities in Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, and the Czech Republic from 1951 to 1953. According to official records alone, it was a large-scale movement of more than 5,000 people. There was also an unofficial survey that said the number was as high as 10,000. For what reason did North Korean children have to move under the unfamiliar skies of Eastern Europe? And how did the children live there for over 7 or 8 years?’ (Page 8)

​When I went to the forest with my children, as soon as the guards dispatched from North Korea disappeared, the Polish teachers started yelling at the children. 'Guys! There’s no need to march in step anymore.’ ‘There’s no need to worry about what others think.’ ‘From now on, just run around and play to your heart’s content! ‘You are free!’ (page 65)
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​In particular, the efforts of Eastern European teachers who wanted to teach what freedom is to North Korean children, who do not even have an awareness of 'freedom', the most absolute human value and dignity, through indoctrination on ideology and ideology, are noteworthy. They take the children out to the forest because classes on 'freedom' are difficult due to monitors and teachers dispatched from North Korea during classes.
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​The teachers set the children in the middle of a vast forest and said, ‘Now, from now on, you don’t have to walk according to commands,’ so they could individually enjoy the beauty of nature in the forest. They would have discovered their own value and beauty in nature. It is the warmth of sunlight, the freshness of the air, and the beauty of nature itself that are felt by individuals without any ideology or belief.

​I found deep emotion and hope in this part. It's about the freedom we all deserve to enjoy in the future. Freedom is like air, we take it for granted and enjoy it. However, just as there is no life without air, without freedom, we cannot enjoy life as human beings. In this respect, I think this movie led me to think and pursue what is valuable to humans.
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​The pictures below are children's drawings freely drawn on the theme of magic.
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​The topic of magic gives children endless and limitless imagination.

​A boundless sense of wonder lies at the heart of children's paintings about magic. In their eyes, the world is not confined by the laws of physics or the constraints of reality. Instead, it is a canvas upon which they can unleash their imagination and explore the limitless possibilities of the unknown. Whether it's a shimmering castle in the clouds or a hidden realm beneath the ocean's surface, every stroke of paint carries with it the promise of adventure and discovery.

In addition to exploring the external manifestations of magic, children's paintings also delve into its deeper meanings and symbolism.

​In a world that often feels bound by rules and limitations, children's paintings remind us of the magic that lies within us all, waiting to be unleashed with a single brushstroke.

​Below is a post from the 'Next Door' app as information on preventing and responding to damage caused by scammers.