Name: Kate Hers
Age: 33
Location: Berlin, Germany
Occupation: Visual artist
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Mount Clemens, a working class suburb of Detroit. I never knew any Korean Americans until I moved to Chicago when I was 18.
Describe your job.
I am a visual artist mostly working in drawing collages and video interventions. Right now I am working on several artistic research projects which brought me to Germany.
Describe your current city.
Berlin is poor, but sexy. It’s a volatile place to live, exciting and inspiring, but cold and rainy, which is definitely a change from Los Angeles, where I was just living last year. This Nov. 9 is the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. I can’t help but be reminded that Korea has yet to be re-unified.
What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done?
In 2002, for a performance intervention in Seoul, I dressed up in a high school girl uniform, made myself look pregnant, and attempted to maniacally laugh for an hour in the Myong-dong shopping district. The police came after 20 minutes (unplanned) and dragged me away.
What was your greatest life moment?
I think my greatest life moments are still being shaped: living in the present and having an awareness of my life’s work as a human being.
What’s your pet peeve?
When after I tell them I’m from the USA, German people ask, “No, where are you really from?”
What’s your guilty pleasure?
Glee.
Any secret talents?
I’m really good at crossing my eyes. I can even just cross one eye while the other is looking straight forward. Gross and weird, but cool! Is that regarded as a talent? Mmmh…maybe not.
If you could meet any Korean or Korean American, who would it be?
The revolutionary political activist, Alexandra Petrovna Kim, who was also the first Korean communist. Interestingly, she was adopted and raised by a Russian after her father passed away.
What would you like to see eradicated from this world?
Overseas Korean adoption, it’s time for Korea to take responsibility for taking care of it’s own children and develop social welfare, especially as the 15th largest economy in the world.
What’s on your iPod?
Yeah Yeah Yeahs (Go Karen O!) , Music Go Music, This American Life podcasts, some lectures by the Dalai Lama and an English-German Dictionary.
What words do you live by?
“In the world through which I travel, I am endlessly creating myself.” – Frantz Fanon
I am KoreAm and proud because we cannot be straightforwardly labeled. We have so many different skills, talents, occupations and interests. We hold different political positions, religions, lifestyles and as a diasporic people, we live scattered all over the world, holding different passports, languages, and cultures. Nevertheless, what I would not mind being typecast as a Korean is to be extremely multi-dimensional and tolerant of others.
FOR ONLY $28!
Featured Event
It’s the new year, and Yim Jae Beum is coming to town! After a sold-out show in Los Angeles last October, he is coming back to hold two U.S. concerts for the 2012 Lunar New Year. Everyone already knows this man can sing! He’s got an impressive resume, debuting as a rock singer back in 1986, releasing Korean classics, such as “For You,” and most recently, joining and winning first place twice on the MBC show, “I am a Singer.”
Seattle and New Jersey, get ready! We are happy to announce that we will be giving away TWO (2) pairs of tickets! read more
LINKS
Featuring Recent Posts Wordpress Widget development by YD
This is a wonderful piece of content, I discovered your blog page searching google for a similar subject and came to this. I couldnt find to much other details on this write-up, so it was pleasant to find this one. I likely will end up being returning to check out some other posts that you have another time.
Yeah Kate!!! I think we’ve seen you everywhere BUT Michigan now!
You know, Detroit is the new Berlin. You should come back!
Intriguing bio. Thanks for sharing..
i’m actually famillar with this chick.
not that i personally know her…
but i am familiar with her and her name…
just reading the q & a part to the craziest thing you ever done…
it brought back memories…
i saw that particular video clip a few years ago
when i had visited korea…
it was part of some art show or something..