PHOTOGRAPHY REVIEW : Exhibit Shows Koreans’ Lives, Past and Present

It is like a quick and painless walk through a history book--a slice of life depicting the immigration of Koreans to the United States.

The photo exhibit entitled “Koreatown: A Photo History,” now on display at the Mills House Art Gallery in Garden Grove, consists of 16 historical, multiple-picture panels and 35 contemporary black-and-white photographs. It was assembled by Craig S. Coleman, executive director of the Korean Society in Los Angeles.

The exhibit takes the viewer from Korean farmers at the turn of the century to a recent shot of Jesse Jackson on the campaign trail at Koreatown in Los Angeles County.

“The exhibition was developed to promote mutual understanding between the Korean and American societies,” Coleman said. “The two communities need to learn about each other. It’s an opportunity to introduce them to each other.”

Garden Grove is the second stop for the traveling exhibition, which was previously shown at the Doheny Library at USC.

The exhibit opens with scenes from the early 1900s of Japanese police executing Korean farmers for protesting land policies, farmers working the land and a street scene from Seoul. These pictures lay the foundation for the Korean migration to the United States.

While the technical quality of the early photos is primitive, such as “Picture Brides,” a photo of brides lining up before their departure from Korea, the impact can be found in the storytelling quality of the photos.

As the show continues along a time line, Koreans are pictured working at sugar plantations in Hawaii for $16 a month. Next comes an immigration movement from 1904 to 1920 when Koreans moved to the San Francisco area and developed a culture in California. The photographic panels also chronicle early Korean community family and business life in America from 1920-1965.

There is also a small sampling of Orange County’s Korean community with a panel of static color photos from meetings of the Orange County Korean Chamber of Commerce, Korean Lions Club and ROK Marine Assn. of Garden Grove.

The contemporary work, which was shot by Sae Bang Lee, Mark Shapiro, Bill Aron and Coleman, only scratches the surface as it documents the current Korean life style in Koreatown.

The photographs are 11-by-14 and 16-by-20-inch black-and-white images showing today’s Korean and American life styles. One photo shows a young Korean girl in traditional clothing walking outside a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant.

Other photos include street scenes contrasting American and Korean signs, a Korean beauty pageant and a series on a small family-owned garment manufacturing shop in the L.A. garment district.

The technical quality of the contemporary photography is adequate, but many are of the snapshot variety.

Despite the differences in relative professionalism of photos from the pre- and post-immigration periods, it is the older photos that are more successful in communicating the story of the Koreans’ lives.

By only providing a glimpse into these peoples’ lives in a new land, the contemporary portion of the exhibit whets one’s appetite for a more penetrating look at the feelings and emotions of life today in the Korean culture.

“ Koreatown: A Photo History” is on display at the Mills House Art Gallery, 12852 Main St., Garden Grove. The exhibition is open Thursdays through Sundays until July 16. The hours are 1 to 8 p.m. Admission is free. Information: (714) 636-7213.