Journey from the Land of By Jan Wizinowich
KeOlaMagazine.com | July - August 2022
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lthough not native to Korea, the hibiscus has long been its national symbol. Probably originating in India, the hibiscus is easily transplanted, and endowed with adaptability. It most likely made its way north through China into Korea, where it was adopted as an emblem of the Joseon dynasty (1392–1910), and as the national symbol of the Republic of Korea (1948). It has long been a symbol for the endurance and prosperity of the Korean people. Perhaps the attributes of the hibiscus were carried in the hearts of Korean immigrants who arrived in Hawai‘i, a native home of hibiscus. Between 1903 and 1905, when the first officially sanctioned Korean immigrants arrived in Hawai‘i, their homeland was in flux—a pawn in global political events and heading towards Japanese occupation in 1910. They approached their new situation with hard work and the hopes of the restoration of the land of hibiscus. Koreans make up one of the smallest immigrant groups on Hawai‘i Island, and much of their lives and accomplishments live in shadow. University of Hawai‘i at Hilo English professor Seri Luangphinith, author of The Paths We Cross: The Lives and Legacies of Koreans on the Big Island, is setting out to change that. What started out as a catalogue for a 2017 Korean art exhibition became a book that captures an array of the history, culture, and experiences of Koreans on Hawai‘i Island. The project emerged out of a request from the university’s students to add Korean studies to the humanities curriculum. Seri began to study Korean with Korean language teacher Hanna Kim, who introduced her to the unique work of Korean artists. Two of those artists, Hae Kyung Seo and Byoung Yong Lee, were featured in a 2017 Korean art exhibit at the East Hawai‘i Cultural Center. Hae Kyung Seo began developing her unique style of calligraphy from the age of seven. Through many years of exploring various forms, her art is now a combination of calligraphy, poetry, and inkwash paintings to depict Korean history, among the first in Hawai‘i.* After earning a degree of fine arts from Hongik University in Seoul, Byoung Yong Lee left to study at the Pratt Institute in New York City. In 1994 he moved to Hawai‘i Island where he engaged in community activism, notably the restoration of the Korean immigrant graves at ‘Alae cemetery in Hilo. Byoung Yong Lee’s more contemporary expressionistic artwork provided a contrast with the more traditional art of Hae Kyung Seo, but also created a synergy of cultural roots.*
Lives Well Lived When Seri began interviewing people, the project grew exponentially. “Every interview yielded two or three more people to contact,” said Seri. As well as the interviews, Seri scoured scholarly articles, books, local community publications, newspaper clippings, oral histories, archives of Lyman Museum, the Plantation Museum, and the main Hawai‘i State
A few of 400 plus rubbings of Korean gravestones collected and transcribed by Seri. photo by Jan Wizinowich
