Hee Jin Kang: portraits of stuff

May 13, 2008

Sometimes photography that depicts the objects that define our "regular life", the things that are with us and so become part of our ignored existence, is the photography that best defines who we are. No portraits are needed then, we can see the person emerging from the "stuff". An example of this is "Sandy's Deli" by Korean photographer, residing in New York City, Hee Jin Kang.

“For two years, I photographed at my parents' corner store, Sandy's Deli, located in a New York City borough. Through this photographic investigation of a place, I created a portrait of my parents without pointing the camera directly at them. Working with a 4x5 camera, I saw layers of accumulation, and objects that, in their disarray, made rhythmic juxtapositions. This accrual of stuff can be peeled away to reveal something simple, poetic and intensely personal, even within a public space like a Korean deli." - Hee Jin Kang.