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hybrids

Through the creation of hybrid toy characters, I integrate visual and conceptual elements that represent opposing forces, symbolizing how seemingly incompatible sub personalities can coexist and find harmony within an individual. Rather than resolving conflict, my work highlights the continuous labor of navigating between conflicting desires, interests, and sub-identities.

Visually, my process begins with aesthetic intuition.I design original character templates based on my preferred shapes, colors, and anatomical proportions. I then dissect and analyze the iconic features of my favorite video game, cartoon, and toy characters. I replace the least recognizable features with my own designs, balancing familiarity and originality. This method allows each character to feel new and fresh while preserving just enough reference points to evoke nostalgia. 

The resulting hybrid characters and the process itself reflect my ongoing examination of self-integration, with one of the examples being the interplay between multiple cultural identities. As a Korean-American navigating two sets of languages, beliefs, attitudes, and traditions, my work becomes a metaphor for finding harmonious co-existence between these sub-identities. These characters embody the possibility that seemingly opposite forces can coexist, forming something that is not only whole, but forces that can enhance each other. These characters reflect my belief that opposite forces can create wholeness where each part contributes to a greater synergy.