Ji Lee. Optimism.
Optimism is a big part of my work. The projects I get excited about are projects that involve optimism and bring a little bit of joy to people. The great thing about humor is that it knocks down the wall that people have as a defense mechanism. You know if you’re smiling at someone, all the bias, preconceptions, and defense mechanisms that they may have towards you just disappear. Using humor can communicate ideas that may be difficult to communicate through criticism.
I’m really interested in miniatures. I lived in Korea until I was ten. One of the things I loved doing as a child was putting together plastic model pieces. A few years ago, I realized my apartment was full of stuff. Stuff was on the walls and the ground, but the ceiling was completely empty. I wondered why we had decorated our walls, our space, our furniture, but had left the ceiling empty. If you look at history, like the Victorian Age, the Middle Ages, examples like the Sistine Chapel, or French chateaux, the ceilings are decorated with moldings, paintings, and so on. With modernization at the beginning of the twentieth century, there was less ornament. People stopped thinking about ceilings. I thought it would be interesting to use that space. I decided to put a little scene on the ceiling and see how people reacted.
When people came to my apartment, most of the evening went by without people noticing. We’re so conditioned not to look up. It wasn't until they were sitting on the sofa that they actually saw it, by accident. I like those moments of surprise and discovery.
