CFA Professor’s Project “(re)Location” Examines Immigrant Experience

"What are the untold [immigrant] stories and why have they remained untold for all these decades?" That question became the inspiration and scholarly basis for Joyce Yip Green, assistant professor of Marital and Family Therapy/Art Therapy in the LMU College of Communication and Fine Arts. "(re)Location: The Lao/Korean Acculturation Project," her work in collaboration with Helen H. Kim, a community-based multimedia artist and owner of The Think Farm, a graphic design and brand studio, emerged from this initial question.

"This project reflects our roles as the sandwich generation: caring for and honoring our aging, first-generation parents while trying to retain and pass down their legacy to the next generation we're nurturing," Green said. "We wanted to delve into these themes for ourselves and our peers, while putting a spotlight on our parents' generation - not as foreigners with exotic stories but as legitimate members of, and integral contributors to American society.
LA2050, an organization aimed at driving community initiatives toward a shared vision for the future of Los Angeles, awarded a $50,000 grant toward the implementation of the project, which featured stories of refugees and immigrants navigating postwar life in the United States and bridging intergenerational connections between these communities throughout Los Angeles.

The physical exhibition was shown at the Oriental Mission Church in the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles from Oct. 5 - 19. There is also a digital version. "We had always envisioned a physical exhibition to showcase in the 2 communities where many of our elders live," Green said. The physical exhibition was a celebration and gathering of community and included guest speakers and cultural performers at the opening event. The Oriental Mission Church, which for over 50 years has been a cornerstone of the Korean community in Los Angeles, is a place of spiritual encouragement, community, and connection to heritage for Kim's family. A second exhibition is scheduled for February 2025 at Clovis Regional Library, in Fresno County that is home to one of the largest Lao communities in the United States.

"This project is important for so many reasons," said Dean Bryant Keith Alexander of LMU College of Communication and Fine Arts. "Amongst its most important aspects is that it encourages an intergenerational dialogue between minoritized subjects, unearthing and liberating stories of trauma and triumph. The research also reinforces the importance of ethnography and autoethnography as qualitative research methodologies that invite the voice and participation of diverse communities into articulating their own lived experience."

The project participants were recruited through Green and Kim's networks, their parents' social networks, as well as through community-based organizations that serve the Lao and Korean communities in Southern California and Central California. "Helen and I were deeply moved by the overwhelming response to the project and the way individuals of all ages connected with the exhibition," Green said. "We received so many emails from people sharing how the exhibition impacted them, inspiring them to reflect on and share their own stories of migration and connection to their cultural heritage."

Along with the immigration stories of the 20 elders, the exhibition showcased the cultural artifacts and art-based responses that the elders presented during interviews. "From the analysis of the interviews, four themes emerged that included narratives related to community, civic engagement, identity, and language," said Green. "While the Lao and Korean elders shared similarities in how they navigated adjustment to their new homes, there were also differences that reflected the socio-cultural, historical, and political influences of their respective homelands. Those nuances are often overlooked, and it was important to us that we presented the unique voices of each elder in ways that were significant to them."

Green said that through this project, many people expressed wanting to work with her and Kim to continue exploring the intersection of art therapy, immigrant stories, and identity. The connections they made with Asian American filmmakers, scholars, artists, and social service organizations who share their vision and passion for the respective communities presents many possibilities to continue this work in creative and meaningful ways.

Alexander added, "The stories that emerge within this powerful research project informs our deep understanding not only of aspects of the Lao/Korean acculturation story.But the research beckons us all to engage in formal and informal dialogue with our elders - conversations that will truly inform not only our past and present, but our future."