Okyoung Noh: Cross the Flow of Violence

“Dare to cross the flow of violence — with a broker as your guide.”

This 40-minute interactive performance is led by the artist in the role of a ​“broker” — a figure who helps the perilous escape from North Korea to China for a price. Brokers play a significant role in guiding North Korean refugees across the Tumen River, a heavily monitored border where armed guards patrol day and night.

Inspired by the story of Mrs. Kim, a North Korean refugee who survived underwater while crossing the river, the artist leads the audience through the exhibition space as if navigating the swirling flow of American imperialist violence in the trans-Pacific. The space becomes a fragmented landscape of memories, witnesses, and echoes — demanding that participants move through it with uncertainty, urgency, and resolve. 

As Mrs. Kim once said, ​“You either die or survive underwater.”

Together, we submerge into this flow, fumbling through the death, pain, and grit of those who came before us. Will we be able to connect to the flow and emerge on the other side of the land?

The performance will be followed by light snacks and a 15-minute Q&A session.

Learn more about the artist: www​.oknoh​.com

Artist Bio

Okyoung Noh is an interdisciplinary artist based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Seoul, South Korea. She visualizes and interrogates the impact of American imperialist violence on Asian women across the trans-Pacific. Through performance, video, community engagement, and multimedia installations, Noh creates spaces where dis/​misplaced bodies connect and reclaim power, place, and presence. Her work has been exhibited internationally at La MaMa (New York, NY), Wave Pool Gallery (Cincinnati, OH), the Athens Institute for Contemporary Art (Athens, GA), Tribowl (South Korea), Hangaram Museum (South Korea), CICA Museum (South Korea), and Seoul Artist’s Platform_​New & Young (South Korea), among others. Her videos have been recognized and featured in the Every Woman Biennial (New York, NY), Indie Short Fest (Los Angeles, CA), the Toronto International Women Film Festival (Canada), the Oakland Short Film Festival (Oakland, CA), and the Freep Film Festival (Detroit, MI), among others. Noh has been nominated for artist residencies at the Seoul Museum of Art and MASS MoCA, where she will be an artist-in-residence in 2025.