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Masters and Maids

Masters and Maids is a photographic essay that reveals the subtle emotional qualities among friendship, ownership, and humanity, which emerge in daily relationships. This series portrays the domestic life of families, especially focusing on the relationship among employers and domestic workers. I am interested in domestic female relationships that range from economic to emotional perspectives. Domestic workers are not just extra help for they add to and intrude into the dynamics of the family. This is a characteristic of contemporary multi ethnic populations, which not only brings multi cultures together that contribute to the richness of the cultural fabric, but also raises economical and social issues.

There are a number of photographic essays that document the external beauty of the landscapes in South Asian countries, or the social conditions that let vulnerable populations like children and women be exploited.  Yet, there are few projects that explore the subtle emotional relationships of the people and the place, especially in situations that are mostly private rather than public.  In the Masters and Maids series I explore and record these relationships. This photographic essay looks at particular ethnic groups in order to find out how families cope with cultural differences within domestic situations.

My cultural identity and female perspective give me somewhat easier access to approach this project.  This photographic essay examines female identity, not to break away from the conventional rules or values applied on women, but to highlight the economic and social difficulty imposed on many South Asian women who are obliged to become the servants of others.

나의 문화적, 여성적 정체성은 이 사진작업을 좀 더 쉽게 접근할 수있도록 도와준다. 이 사진 에세이는 여성성이라는 주제를 여성에게 주어지던 기존의 관습이나 가치를 통해 보는 것이 아니라, 많은 동남아 여성들이 다른 이의 하인이 될 수 밖에 없는 원인인 경제적인 어려움에 초점을 맞추어 여성의 자아정체성에 대해 접근한다.