On View

Current exhibition:

Sarang-Bang, an installation by EunYoung Choi   

April 13 – June 8, 2025

Opening Reception Sunday April 13, 2-4pm

Visual Artist EunYoung Choi creates a new artwork onsite. She is inviting visitors to share family and community stories that will be reflected in the installation.  Story-sharing continues over tea on Tuesday and Sundays through the spring. The exhibition is curated by Hyewon Yi,  director and curator of Amelie A. Wallace Gallery at SUNY Old Westbury.

Sarang-band’s literal translation from KoSarang-bang [사랑방] is a space in a traditional Korean house where the owner welcomes guests, enjoys hobbies, and socializes.  Sarang-bang literally translates to “Love Room” and is a formal yet intimate room similar to a Victorian parlor where guests are entertained. It’s a space to gather, share stories, and have debates.

 Similar to parlor’s etymology meaning a "room for speaking,” based on the Old French "parleor" or “parloir,” I hope to create a “Sarang-bang” at the Voelker Orth Museum for the community to come together and share their stories.

 I am interested in creating a warm welcoming space to share our memories and experiences, to come together as a community to remember our past and build our future together. As a person of Asian descent who grew up in Asia, Middle East and North America, I’ve always been labeled "the other.” I have had to constantly negotiate and redefine who I am, and these experiences continue to inform my work. Queens is home to one of the most diverse communities in New York and possibly the world. As immigrants ourselves or as descendants of immigrants, we all share a history that helped weave the fabric of America. It will be an honor to bring together these diverse family stories as a collaborative visual installation.

This project is a recipient of a 2025 New York Foundation for the Arts Queens Fellowship award.