The Tourist: Selected Works by Steven Shik OPENING

Artist Statement for The Tourist:

Disconnected from a culture while being designated by its

absence is a struggle many Korean Adoptees experience.

What does it mean when you’re told that you don’t belong to

your country of origin, while the country you reside in wants to

modify if you even belong there?

Demarcating our identity as a Korean Adoptee is an

exploration of truth and trauma. It means understanding the

choices we had no part in making, while experiencing the

repercussions. It’s the lens that has provided me the context of

how I define “home” and the people who became “family”.

Contemplating my journey as an Asian American as I enter

my fourth decade, this body of work is a reconciliation of culture

and identity as I end one chapter while beginning another.

Media Contact:DISCO WALLS Email: [email protected] @discowalls @detroit_shippingDetroit Shipping Co. Info: detroitshippingcompany.com

About Detroit Shipping CompanyLocated at 474 Peterboro Street, Detroit Shipping Co. transforms twenty‑one shipping containers into a multi-use venue featuring restaurants, bars, art galleries, and event spaces. It has become a notable destination for Detroit’s creative and community‑engaged programming

Artist Bio:

Steven Shik was born as Min Shik Oh in Seoul, South

Korea. Promptly put for adoption following his birth, he was re-

named Steven Adams upon his arrival in Jackson, MI at just three

months of age.

He received his bachelor’s degree in fine art with an

emphasis on illustration at Kendall College of Art and Design,

located in Grand Rapids, MI. It was during this period that he

began to use “Steven Shik” as the moniker to reflect the dualistic

nature of his upbringing.

Using geometric shapes and lines through acrylic painting,

the use recurring imagery and color palettes are implemented to

construct cohesive narratives and symbolism.

Channeling his own experiences as a Korean Adoptee,

Steven Shik explores the notion of identity through cultural origins

and expectations. By applying the filter of his experience as an

Asian American, he recontextualizes Korean symbolism to help

illustrate his emotional disconnection to a culture that they remain

a Spectator to.

Steven Shik currently resides on the East side of Detroit, MI

and is working on two solo exhibitions while serving as adjunct

professor at College for Creative Studies in the Illustration

department.

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