OPTICAL ILLUSION

Perceived by our personal experiences, portrayed by three objects; the cube, representing space; the sphere, representing emotions and; the cone, representing people.

Our interpretations of the three objects and the properties we perceive with our own eyes are a sense of illusion, expressed through restrained movements and low-pitched classical music: 

 

  • The Cube: Represents the space we are currently residing in and the hardships of living in our current space as a limited place. 

  • The Sphere: Represents the emotions we feel while residing in our current space and the constant changes in our feelings and thoughts while away from our home country. Various emotions we feel in our space.

  • The Cone: Represents the relationships we encounter and have with the people in New York City, being of Korean descendants. 

 

The project was selected while imagining our personal encounters that created a sense of optical illusions by substituting the stories we experienced in New York City life into each object. The difference felt in the space and personal journeys between life in South Korea and NYC. Confused emotions that are the opposite of the excitement that crosses between us living as immigrants in the United States. Through all this, we expressed an unconscious optical illusion of our everyday lives as native Koreans living in New York City.

Project Credits

ART DIRECTOR_ YOON JUNG KIM 

CHOREOGRAPHER / PERFORMER_ JI HYUN KIM

PERFORMER_ HANNAH JEW

COMPOSER_ EJ JEONG 

VIDEOGRAPHER_ SEO JONG PARK

PHOTOGRAPHER_ DONG MIN PARK

MANAGER_ JIN LEE

Filmed in

queens, NY

2022

The cube symbolizes the physical and mental space we inhabit as immigrants. Its rigid, closed form mirrors the limitations and boundaries we often face — from language and cultural barriers to the emotional walls we build to protect ourselves.
It reflects the loneliness of confined city apartments and the invisible borders that separate us from feeling fully at home.

The cube symbolizes the physical and mental space we inhabit as immigrants. Its rigid, closed form mirrors the limitations and boundaries we often face — from language and cultural barriers to the emotional walls we build to protect ourselves.
It reflects the loneliness of confined city apartments and the invisible borders that separate us from feeling fully at home.

The cube symbolizes the physical and mental space we inhabit as immigrants. Its rigid, closed form mirrors the limitations and boundaries we often face — from language and cultural barriers to the emotional walls we build to protect ourselves.
It reflects the loneliness of confined city apartments and the invisible borders that separate us from feeling fully at home.




The sphere represents the emotional journey of navigating life between cultures.
Its smooth, rolling shape suggests movement, change, and instability — much like the waves of homesickness, joy, anxiety, and longing that ebb and flow in a diasporic life.
It holds the delicate balance of missing home while embracing new experiences.




The sphere represents the emotional journey of navigating life between cultures.
Its smooth, rolling shape suggests movement, change, and instability — much like the waves of homesickness, joy, anxiety, and longing that ebb and flow in a diasporic life.
It holds the delicate balance of missing home while embracing new experiences.




The sphere represents the emotional journey of navigating life between cultures.
Its smooth, rolling shape suggests movement, change, and instability — much like the waves of homesickness, joy, anxiety, and longing that ebb and flow in a diasporic life.
It holds the delicate balance of missing home while embracing new experiences.




The cone stands for human connection — pointed, directed, and rooted.
Its sharp tip points to the fragile, intentional nature of the relationships we form in a foreign place.
While grounded by shared cultural identity, these relationships stretch upward, seeking belonging, recognition, and mutual understanding in a diverse and often divided city.




The cone stands for human connection — pointed, directed, and rooted.
Its sharp tip points to the fragile, intentional nature of the relationships we form in a foreign place.
While grounded by shared cultural identity, these relationships stretch upward, seeking belonging, recognition, and mutual understanding in a diverse and often divided city.




The cone stands for human connection — pointed, directed, and rooted.
Its sharp tip points to the fragile, intentional nature of the relationships we form in a foreign place.
While grounded by shared cultural identity, these relationships stretch upward, seeking belonging, recognition, and mutual understanding in a diverse and often divided city.

Special Guest Performer

John Doe - Managing Director at Apple

Hannah Jew 
Performer


Hannah Jew (周健倫) is an NYC-based multi-hyphenate artist, dance educator and fitness instructor originally from Oklahoma City, OK. Her favorite credits include: Yuletide Celebration (Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra), Eliza/Dance Captain (Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre: The King and I), The King and I (National Tour), choreographer: re-creation of the Chinese Divertissement (now called Ribbon Dance) for Oklahoma Festival Ballet’s The Nutcracker (The University of Oklahoma), choreographer/dancer in collaboration w/Chengjin Koh & Verona Quartet (Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art - Washington, D.C.), The Pajama Game (NAAP). Hannah has danced with Oklahoma City Ballet, Dayton Ballet, Ballet Hispánico’s BHdos & Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company. She is a graduate of The University of Oklahoma with a BFA in Ballet Performance.



Special Guest Performer

John Doe - Managing Director at Apple

Hannah Jew 
Performer


Hannah Jew (周健倫) is an NYC-based multi-hyphenate artist, dance educator and fitness instructor originally from Oklahoma City, OK. Her favorite credits include: Yuletide Celebration (Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra), Eliza/Dance Captain (Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre: The King and I), The King and I (National Tour), choreographer: re-creation of the Chinese Divertissement (now called Ribbon Dance) for Oklahoma Festival Ballet’s The Nutcracker (The University of Oklahoma), choreographer/dancer in collaboration w/Chengjin Koh & Verona Quartet (Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art - Washington, D.C.), The Pajama Game (NAAP). Hannah has danced with Oklahoma City Ballet, Dayton Ballet, Ballet Hispánico’s BHdos & Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company. She is a graduate of The University of Oklahoma with a BFA in Ballet Performance.



Special Guest Performer

John Doe - Managing Director at Apple

Hannah Jew 
Performer


Hannah Jew (周健倫) is an NYC-based multi-hyphenate artist, dance educator and fitness instructor originally from Oklahoma City, OK. Her favorite credits include: Yuletide Celebration (Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra), Eliza/Dance Captain (Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre: The King and I), The King and I (National Tour), choreographer: re-creation of the Chinese Divertissement (now called Ribbon Dance) for Oklahoma Festival Ballet’s The Nutcracker (The University of Oklahoma), choreographer/dancer in collaboration w/Chengjin Koh & Verona Quartet (Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art - Washington, D.C.), The Pajama Game (NAAP). Hannah has danced with Oklahoma City Ballet, Dayton Ballet, Ballet Hispánico’s BHdos & Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company. She is a graduate of The University of Oklahoma with a BFA in Ballet Performance.



© 2025 by PROJECT301

NEW YORK, NY | EMAIL_301project.nyc@gmail.com

© 2025 by PROJECT301

NEW YORK, NY | EMAIL_301project.nyc@gmail.com