The Centre for the Study of Korea, University of Toronto and the Korean Office for Research and Education, York University in partnership with OCADU University's Art & Social Change, Faculty of Art presents:
COMFORT
a documentary by Emmanuel Moonchil Park.
"COMFORT" (2020), tells the life story of the late Kim Soo Nak, a survivor of the "comfort women" system of sexual slavery set up by the Japanese Imperial government during World War II.
This is the first event in a programme series connected to the exhibition of The Statue of the Girl of Peace at OCAD University by the artists Kim Seo-Kyung and Kim Eun-Sung. The statue is a symbol of the flight for justice led by surviving 'comfort women' and their allies for redress from the Japanese government.
- Friday, January 13, 2023, 7 PM - 9:30 PM
- OCAD University, 100 McCaul St., Main Floor Auditorium
- Screening, Reception and Post-Screening Talk with the Director
The Statue of the Girl of Peace is on view at OCAD University (100 McCaul Street) in the main lobby from January 5 - April 28, 2023.
The Statue of the Girl of Peace
Oil on fiberglass-reinforced polyester (FRP) and stone powder 160x 180x 125 cm
2017 (The original bronze statue 2011)
On Wednesday, January 8, 1992, thousands of protestors rallied in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul, South Korea to demand redress from the Japanese government for the large-scale system of sexual servitude setup and operated by the Japanese Imperial rule during World War II. The Japanese military abducted an estimated 200,000 girls and women from across the Asia-Pacific region who were euphemistically called “comfort women” and forced into sexual slavery. In 2011 the artists installed the bronze ‘Statue of Peace’ in front of the embassy where it remains today. The statue is a powerful symbol of the redress movement, there are version of the statue sited around the world, from Germany to the United States, Australia and Canada.
The Wednesday Demonstrations have turned into a weekly protest in Korea and are led by the remaining survivors. The Statue of the Girl of Peace was created on the occasion of the 1000th protest as a tribute to the spirit and the deep history of the Wednesday Demonstrations, which continue today. The survivors' ongoing fight for justice is a fight against militarized gender-based sexual violence everywhere.
The empty chair beside the statue is an invitation to you to sit beside the Girl and support the call for redress for the so- called ‘comfort women’. Please take a photo and share it on social media using the hashtags: #statueofpeace #justiceforcomfortwomen