The Korean Cultural Center Washington, D.C. proudly joins the upcoming First Friday Dupont, DC's local art showcase now happening online virtually, on Friday, July 3, featuring DC-based Korean American artist Julia Kwon and her vibrant new textile face coverings in a segment at 6:15 p.m.

Kwon, whose latest project Unapologetically Asian is a series of Korean-style patchwork face masks created in response to coronavirus-related racism affecting Asian Americans, will talk about her key themes, inspirations, creative process, and recent developments for her art.

First Friday Dupont connects the public with modern and contemporary art by national and international artists with a special emphasis on local and up and coming artists. Participants can enter the heart of DC’s active art scene on the first Friday of every month from 5:00-8:00 p.m., with a variety of artists featured throughout. Due to the COVID-19, the program has pivoted to a virtual format since May.

To join the event, check the official First Friday Dupont: Virtually Facebook event for live updates linking to featured artists throughout the event, or go to KCCDC YouTube Channel (@KoreaCultureDC) to watch Julia Kwon’s featured segment from 6:15 p.m. on Friday, July 3. The Korean Cultural Center Washington, D.C. aims to stay connected with our local community of artists and art lovers through online cultural outreach and wishes everyone safety and health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Korean Cultural Center Washington, D.C.  YouTube Channel click Here 

First Friday Dupont: Virtually Facebook event click Here

The Others

Unapologetically Asian

About the Artist

​Julia Kwon creates traditional and hybrid Korean textiles through quilting and painting. Her work aims to challenge preexisting notions of what it means to be Korean and feminine, as well as to examine the complexities of constructing identity within the contemporary context of globalism and cultural hybridity. She also explores community and personal relationship-building through collaborative projects such as communal quilting, one-on-one portrait drawing, and building a community for local artist talks. Her newest project, Unapologetically Asian, is a series of Korean patchwork face masks created in response to coronavirus-related racism against Asian Americans. Such fabrics, with which she often works, are inspired by Korean traditional textiles that are deeply rooted in Korea’s cultural heritage and representative of women’s crafts that combine beauty and utility.

Julia Kwon was born in the United States and earned her M.F.A. at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts/Tufts University and B.A. in Studio Art at Georgetown University. She has been featured in numerous solo exhibitions and been awarded the School of the Museum of Fine Arts/Tufts University Traveling Fellowship as well as artist residencies at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Vermont Studio Center, NARS Foundation, Chautauqua Visual Arts, Montgomery College, Gallery 263, and the Textile Arts Center. She has given talks at the Smithsonian Institution’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Georgetown University, Lehigh University, The University of Rochester, Emerson College, and Montgomery College.

For more about this artist and her artwork, visit www.juliakwon.com.