Hwaseong arts project gives migrant workers a place to connect

A community arts project in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, is giving migrant workers and foreign residents a space to tell stories, make music and build ties with local residents, The Korea Times reported.

The project, launched in 2020 near Balan Manse Market in Hyangnam, reflects how one of South Korea’s major destinations for foreign residents is using community arts to address distance between migrant communities and local residents.

The Migration Stories Project was founded by Korean artist Kim Yang-woo under the slogan “World is Our Home,” according to The Korea Times. The space supports interviews, art, music and community activities with migrant communities, including Nepali, Thai, Sri Lankan and Philippine residents.

“I think Korean and migrant people are the same — the same movers. We are very similar, but we have different cultures and different languages, so we didn’t connect.” Kim told The Korea Times.

The project’s activities include music studio sessions, silk-screen T-shirt making, print experiments, handmade musical instrument workshops, painting, performances and collaborations with Korean artists. “Our project also collaborates with Korean artists. We occasionally invite others to work with the project, creating an opportunity for artistic collaboration between the community space and established artists,” Kim said.

Kim is also involved with Yatri, a five-member band made up mostly of Nepalese migrants in Korea, where she plays drums. The Korea Times reported that Rai Prakash, a Nepali migrant worker who came to Korea in 2016 and works at a sponge factory, is part of the band, which performs older Nepali cover songs and is experimenting with original material.

“Sometimes it is very difficult to manage the time,” Rai said. “We must work because money is a necessity, but ... your passion for what your heart tells you is also very important.”

The group is preparing for upcoming events, including a performance scheduled for October and Nepali cultural festivals later in the year, according to The Korea Times. Song Hyun-joong, director of the Hwaseong Community Support Center, said migrant workers and other foreign residents are part of Korean society: “They are part of our community. That distinction is important,” he said.

“Yet inclusion does not happen automatically,” Song said, adding that language barriers, unfamiliarity, social isolation and different cultural expectations can keep residents apart.