Artist Jean Shin Honors Ecology and Korean Burial Tradition in Green-Wood Installations
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Artist Jean Shin discusses her two-site public art installation at Greenwood Cemetery, commissioned to mark the opening of the restored Greenhouse Visitor Center. Her work, 'Celadon Landscape,' transforms two tons of discarded Korean celadon ceramic shards into a mosaic sculpture, honoring both the beauty of imperfection and the cultural heritage of Korean ceramics. The piece invites visitors to reflect on memory and loss through a participatory project where they write the names of loved ones on paper shards, later compiled into a collective memorial. Her second work, 'Offering,' is a ceremonial burial of two fallen red and pin oak trees from the cemetery grounds, reimagined as a dignified resting place with gathering stones and bird baths. Shin collaborated closely with cemetery gravediggers, emphasizing the dignity of labor and the continuity between human and natural cycles. The installation also incorporates a spiritual dimension through a ritual blessing by diaspora Korean shaman Mudung Jan, framing the event as a communal act of remembrance and renewal. The episode explores themes of ecology, ancestral memory, and the sacredness of space, blending personal history, cultural tradition, and environmental stewardship.
Reclaiming discarded materials—like ceramic shards and fallen trees—can transform waste into powerful acts of remembrance and art.
Cemeteries are not just spaces of mourning but also living sites of cultural continuity, ecological resilience, and community gathering.
Participatory art invites visitors to become co-creators of memory, turning personal grief into collective healing.
Collaborating with skilled tradespeople like gravediggers elevates the dignity of labor and deepens the connection between art and place.
Nature’s adaptability—seen in non-native birds thriving in Greenwood—mirrors the resilience of diasporic communities and urban ecosystems.
…and 3 more takeaways available in PodZeus
Introducing the Greenhouse Visitor Center and Jean Shin's Commission
Alison Stewart introduces the opening of Greenwood Cemetery’s restored Greenhouse Visitor Center and introduces artist Jean Shin, whose two new installations are part of the celebration. The event is open to the public on April 18th.
Celadon Landscape: Beauty in Brokenness and Cultural Memory
“Even though it was broken, it really had the beauty, the color, the kind of tactility of this great ancient art.”
Participatory Memorial: Who Do You Carry With You?
“Who do you carry with you? And knowing that a piece of shard is something where once it maybe held water or served tea and was functional.”
Offering: Honoring Fallen Trees with Ritual and Dignity
“They need a proper burial. We need to honor them. And these are our elders. They gave so much and after they died, they could still be offering so much to us.”
Nature, Resilience, and the Living Landscape of Greenwood
Shin reflects on the adaptive nature of birds and trees at Greenwood, drawing parallels between ecological resilience and the immigrant experience. She emphasizes the cemetery as a living ecosystem and a space for intergenerational connection.
“They need a proper burial. We need to honor them. And these are our elders. They gave so much and after they died, they could still be offering so much to us.”
“Even though it was broken, it really had the beauty, the color, the kind of tactility of this great ancient art.”
“We're really in ceremony together and thinking about rituals that we need to let go, rituals that we need to persist despite the hardships that may be going on.”
Host
Guest
Jean Shin
person
Greenwood Cemetery
organization
Korea
place
Greenhouse Visitor Center
organization
Celadon Landscape
other
Offering
other
Mudung Jan
person
glacial rocks
other
Flushing Queens
place
red oak
other
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