Interviews with You!: Seabomna Choe, Art and Studying in the UK

“I want my artwork to be a part of the solution for the better world.”

This week I had an opportunity to sit down and chat with one of my English students, Seabomna. We have been speaking to each other since around August of this year and I have always found her topics for discussion extremely interesting, as I learnt more about her life I felt she would be a great person to interview, so let’s begin!

Could you introduce yourself to us, what is your name, where are you from and what do you do?

Hello! My name is Seabomna Choe I am from Seoul, South Korea and I’m a Masters student at the Royal College of Art in London.

We met through English lessons online, how long had you been speaking English for before that?

Erm..it’s quite hard to state clearly. I was taught English as a compulsory subject from Elementary school to University, but you know that wasn’t really helpful in terms of spoken English. It was rather focused on getting a certain grade. I couldn’t speak in English at all apart from ‘Hi, how are you? I’m fine thank you, and you?’.

Then, when I’d just finished my degree show at Uni, I decided to take a gap year and travel to Europe. Once I booked a flight, I’d got two months to go. I was so excited but at the same time worried about how to communicate with people there but I thought ‘how do I even ask for help when I get lost? ‘

I thought I had to improve my English by the time I get there…So, I started a video call in English with a teacher from the Philippines. Two months of studying was definitely not enough to speak fluently but at least I could reduce a bit of my ‘Englishphobia’ and find my destinations in the middle of foreign countries with help from locals.

However after the trip, I got thirsty for more English. Just being able to speak simple sentences and hold basic conversations couldn’t fulfil me. So, I decided to enroll in an English course at the British Council in Korea and studied for a few months. The more I learned English the more I wanted to experience the culture where it is used. Therefore, I went on a Working Holiday to the UK and lived in London for 2 years.

Has speaking English opened up opportunities for you?

Yes! Massively! Studying abroad, especially at my dream school is one of them!

You mentioned that you went to the UK as per of your Working Holiday but soon you will be returning as part of your studies. What made you decide on studying abroad and what was it that drew you to the UK initially?

Studying abroad had been my lifelong dream. I’d always wanted to experience different cultures and share thoughts with people from different backgrounds. I had a very good time when I was living in the UK as part of my Working Holiday, Plus, my dream school was in the UK to be specifically.

Oh, one more thing I have to say, I genuinely loved the weather in the UK! (most British people would laugh)

How have you found the education system in the UK?

So far so good! It’s obviously not easy especially a lot of discussions about abstract or radical topics which I hadn’t really experienced in my previous education, but well, I’m truly enjoying it. Also, I’m quite surprised at how I can be free to express myself through the course I am studying. There are no boundaries or restrictions, the College is totally open to anything for students to broaden their practices and the tutors support this greatly.

While living in the UK what were some aspects you enjoyed and some you disliked

I’d say once again I do love the weather in the UK. Rain doesn’t bother me at all, I like that it doesn’t go crazy in Summer and Winter whereas Korea has relatively extreme weather which I can’t bear with.

I also loved going to the big supermarkets like Tesco. Ingredients are way cheaper than in South Korea especially Cheese! As a cheese lover, that was like heaven for me.

However, I didn’t enjoy the transportation in London AT ALL. I was annoyed almost everyday…

That frequent delays and cancellation…speechless.

Where would you say was your favourite place to visit in the UK?

It’s really difficult to choose just one place…If I have to pick one I would say, Scarborough.

Whenever I say this, people usually get surprised because it’s not quite popular among non-British people I would say? But I was curious about that town where the famous song, ‘Scarborough Fair’ originated. I went there on my own unfortunately on a heavy rainy day…I was wet all day and since it’s a coastal town the sea breeze was super strong and very foggy. 

Having said that, I had the most amazing fish and chips! In addition, people were so friendly and kind and the town was beautiful as well with a mysterious and magical atmosphere. I enjoyed a lot at the end.

Could you see yourself living in another country other than the UK or Korea?

I’d like to spend some time in Paris one day. First of all, I loooooove French bakeries and desserts! I think I can eat those everyday for every meal.

Now I wanted to move on to your artwork, could you tell me how you got into art and when did you discover you had a talent for it?

As far as I remember I have always been holding a pencil and drawing things. That’s the thing that I could do the best and enjoy the most. Many of my family are involved in art disciplines, my mum used to be too. So, it seems like it must be hereditary perhaps?

But being an artist wasn’t my teenage dream. I thought of it as more of a hobby not as a future job.

Then one day, when I was about 15, I had a summon at my church and got this message ‘What you feel passionate about is the talent that God gave to you and he will use you for his plan through it.’

While heading back home, I told my mum that I had to go for art. So yeah that was the official beginning of a journey, and luckily I’m still on it.

I have seen some of your work but could you describe your style to those that do not know you?

My style could be described as a linear and delicate graphic style with a sense of perfectionism and attention to detail which simply means I’m paranoid about clean and refined lines!

Are there any artists or any other people that inspired your art style?

I think I can’t pluck some specific artists because I get inspired by a plethora of artworks. I usually take photos in museums and galleries and cartegorise them according to how I can reference them in terms of colours or angles. I also save a lot of different artworks from Instagram feeds.

Nature and sightseeing inspire me as well.

What made you want to continue into art for University?

Once I set my mind on art, I decided to go to an Art University. So, I studied Media Design in my BA which is kind of graphic design, animation and mobile application type things. But I found although I’m in an art school, there were not much opportunities to draw. After I had graduated, I really didn’t want to pursue in that direction because I couldn’t truly enjoy it. Most of my friends at Uni got jobs and started to set their lives up. I was completely lost. I didn’t know what to do.

Then, when I moved to London I could have some ME TIME. I was afraid of restarting but I started to draw again. I finally could enjoy and find happiness plus I could even make some money from it. Even happier!

I realised I have to carry on in this field. Then luckily I could have a chance to study MA abroad.

Which is all I’ve ever wanted!

What is your aim with your artwork?

My aim is to depict the reality of what’s happening and challenging conversations. I want my artwork to be a part of the solution for the better world.

I’ve been trying to convey the issues that are currently going on and if my work can help anybody else gain more awareness then it would have been worthwhile.

Is there a particular medium of art you prefer such as paintings etc?

I usually draw with digital tools because it enables Control+Z haha. Aside from joke, as we are living in a digital world, drawing digitally has a lot of benefits. Easy modifying is one of them but also it is convenient to convert to various platforms. Saying that, I still love to draw in a traditional way and am trying to explore new mediums.

You are also a singer, what kind of music genre do you prefer to sing and why?

Oh haha singing is just for fun when I find some free time, well it is a huge thing that I enjoy after drawing though. I don’t think I’m into any kind of specific genre but I usually sing Christian contemporary style songs but other than that, whenever I find songs that catch my ears I delve into those!

You recently posted a video on your Instagram where you incorporated both your artwork and your singing, how did it feel to be able to join those two worlds together and do you think you would like to do something like that again?

As I’ve got an interest and a bit of a passion for music, I’ve always wanted to incorporate music and my practice somehow, someday. Through this project, first of all, I enjoyed a lot during working on it and found that combination of sound and image is a key component for me to take further.

Since we began talking, you have won a competition to get your work published, could you describe this work and how you felt when you found out it would be published?

So, I took a part in a programme, the government sponsored, that is making a picture book with a professional author mentoring. The mentees were like 30 people and only 3 of them would be selected for publication.

My book was about an adventure of a girl who tries to find fun. I dedicated the whole summer writing a story and drawing the illustrations but unfortunately I couldn’t reach my satisfying completion by the deadline.

So, I didn’t expect at all that I would be selected, however, I was called and stood there among the 3 winners..

I cannot say enough about how surprised and happy It made me! I was shouting inside and called my family straight away! I’m not sure when it’s going to be actually published though.

You recently had an exhibition for some of your artwork, could you tell me the benefit of exhibitions and how they are set up?

It depends on the exhibition theme. Some can be an opportunity to communicate with audience directly, explain your intention and hear feedback from them. It also can be a way to get recognised from the public. So you never know what can happen and where it leads you!

The most amazing thing is you can meet like-minded people. It’s always exciting to have conversations with them and also share different perspectives!

How exhibitions are set up also depends. You can hold an individual exhibition and in that case you pay and manage everything. Otherwise, you can apply for galleries’ submissions or competitions…etc

We met during COVID-19 which is still ongoing now, how has the Corona Virus changed your life, do you think it has actually benefitted you in any way rather than just been a negative impact?

It affected my plan massively. I was supposed to come back to London in September and start my first term at campus so I was super excited for that but because of the Corona the college had set everything online therefore I had to cancelled my previous plan.

However, there has been some benefits if I think about it in a positive way, for example I could save up money from not being in London and get some opportunities like taking part in exhibitions and making a book. And most importantly, I could spend more time with my friends and family. So, it has been not all bad.

Do you feel we could all learn something from our time in lockdowns and self isolations, has that inspired your work at all?

Yes, definitely. I think I could learn how to be alone. How to enjoy an absolute solitude. I believe crisis allows us to discuss it. Whether it’s artistic or not. Since we are all in the same boat. No matter what disciplines you are in, we just have to gather together and find the solution in order to get better prepared for another similar situation.

Whether I did consciously or not my recent works are connected to the situations we face now.

Soon you will return to the UK, is there anything you are looking forward to doing once you return?

I did plan a bunch of list to do but that notorious virus ruined everything lol!

But I’m still looking forward to seeing my friends in the UK and starting my second term at campus although it’s going to be very limited.

I wanted to see a lot of musicals and travel to other cities.. well since it seems impossible at the moment I’m hopeful to do that in the near future.

Seeing your progress in your work has inspired me to continue with my own and keep pushing forward, do you have any words of encouragement for those that may be stuck in their own work?

Keep doing things! Whatever you do it can be a source of inspiration and will blossom someday.

If you are not in the place what you wanted be and you might think it’s a waist of time, as long as you don’t give up that experiences will be a strong cornerstone of your path.

Thank you Seabomna for taking the time to share with us and showing us your unique perspective on life in the UK! If readers would like to follow Seabomna and see more examples of her art work you can follow her on Instagram here.