University of Central Arkansas Schedler Honors College student Sydney Fallon completed a solo international art exhibition in Seoul, South Korea, over the summer as an Honors capstone project. The exhibition, titled “Art & Seoul”, was held July 24-27 at Mi&Gallery in the Jongno district near Gyeongbokgung Palace.
Inspired by her own lived experience as a Korean adoptee, Fallon created Art & Seoul to explore themes of identity, belonging and the Korean adoptee experience through a series of sculptural works created in collaboration with Korean adoptees around the world. Each sculpture incorporated adoption file materials, personal photographs and participant narratives, resulting in an interactive installation.
The project began as an idea during Fallon’s interview for admission into the Norbert O. Schedler Honors College. Inspired by her passion for art and travel, she developed “Art & Seoul” over more than two years with the support of Honors faculty and mentors in the UCA Department of Art and Design.
“Ever since I entered the Art program at UCA in 2022, I knew I wanted to focus my artwork on the Korean international Adoptee and Korean American experience. I think that my enrollment in the Honors College at UCA helped me to dream bigger as an artist,” Fallon said.
With guidance from mentor Sandra Luckett, she selected sculpture as the primary medium and built the exhibition around inspiration from Doljabi (돌잡이), a Korean tradition in which symbolic objects are chosen to foreshadow a child’s future. Participants were asked to select an object representing their relationship with South Korea, forming the conceptual foundation for the work.
The exhibition coincided with the student’s first extended return to South Korea since her 2004 adoption. The reception on July 26 aligned with the anniversary of the day she first met her parents, adding personal significance to the milestone. More than 70 attendees, including adoptees and advocates involved with EARS (Emergency Action for Records Storage), participated in the gallery event and online tour.
Throughout the development process, Fallon received extensive academic and creative support from Honors College faculty, including Ellen Hostetter, as well as professors Michael Lierly, Jeff Young, Gayle Seymour and David House.
Fallon said she hopes the exhibition encourages viewers to reconsider their perceptions of international adoption and identity. “If even one person who interacted with “Art & Seoul” was inspired not to stay silent, I believe I will have succeeded,” she said.