To Be Cute: Digital publication

To Be Cute is a book that holds a series of dear conversations held between 2023-2024 with artists, writers, scholars, curators and friends on how cuteness has and continues to be present in their lives. These conversations shed light on how they use and consider this aesthetic within the context of their professional work, and also their personal lives. I hope they can reveal how much the cute aesthetic matters and holds space in people’s homes, memories, and hearts. 𖠇ຼ.𖠇ຼ.

With: Lulu Yao Gioiello, Amy Yao, Sophia Park, Erica Enriquez, Erica Kanesaka, Daniel Chew & Ten Izu of CFGNY, Stella Zhong, Larissa Pham

Purchase the digital book via this link! ໒꒰ྀི˵•༥•˵꒱ྀིა

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Notes / Image links

Hello! You will find below footnote reference links for quick access and images referred to but not included in the publication, To Be Cute. For any images where the source was not found, links have been replaced with the same image on alternative sites.

♡ Preface ▶
[1] GYOPO is a collective of diasporic Korean cultural producers and arts professionals generating and sharing progressive, critical, intersectional and intergenerational discourses, community alliances, and free educational programs in Los Angeles and beyond.
[2] Sharon Kinsella, “Cuties in Japan,” in Documents of Contemporary Art: The Cute, ed. Melissa McCarthy (London: Whitechapel Gallery; Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2022), 126–28.
♡ What it Means to be Cute ▶
✱ Introduction
[1] GYOPO is a collective of diasporic Korean cultural producers and arts professionals generating and sharing progressive, critical, intersectional and intergenerational discourses, community alliances, and free educational programs in Los Angeles and beyond.
[2] Link to sign up for the GYOPO newsletter.
✱ Christina Yuna Ko
[3] Christina Yuna Ko, “Cuteness Resources”, August 2023.
✱ Lulu Yao Gioiello
[4] “AAA-A Zine Residency Open Call,” Asia Art Archive in America, September 23, 2022.
[5] Lulu Yao Gioiello, “Assembled in the Margins: An Inexhaustible Index of Asian Artist Collectives”, FAR–NEAR.
[6] Lulu Yao Gioiello, “Assembled in the Margins: An Inexhaustible Index of Asian Artist Collectives” (digital), FAR–NEAR. Gioiello’s digital version of the index, where people can submit suggestions for collectives to be added.
[7] FAR–NEAR.
✱ Amy Yao
[8] “...if my child is acting like Elmyra” cartoon character Elmyra Duff image references. ↓
[8.1] https://tinyurl.com/amy-yao-8-elmyra1.
[8.2] https://tinyurl.com/amy-yao-8-elmyra2.
[8.3] https://tinyurl.com/amy-yao-8-elmyra3.
[9] “Boom Time Ecosystems,” exhibition, Mathew Galerie, Berlin, Germany, 2014.
[10] “Mike Kelley is one that I come to a lot. I liked his work since high school” image reference.
[11] Amy showed work from CFGNY’s work Fashion Max 2 during her talk.
[12] “I found a lot of animal pictures and interspecies interactions were common.” Seal surfing with a person.
[13]“These images are from the ’70s”. ↓
[13.1] Mary River turtle.
[13.2] Dog float in parade.
[14] “Here’s a dog getting saved by a dolphin.”
[15] “These look (like it’s from the) ’70s too, even though they’re probably not.” ↓
[15.1] Dog with ribbon cake.
[15.2] Cat Bread.
[16] “Anything in a little burger.” My Melody in a hamburger.
[17] “More ’70s-ish looking stuff.” Hay bale spider.
[18] “Animals eating fruit.” Bunny and fig.
[19] “Animal interaction.” Sheep and lamb.
[20] “More animals.” ↓
[20.1] Kitten with heart.
[20.2] "Everyone stop its a bear holding bear stuffie" meme.
♡ Erica Enriquez ▶
[1] Slide talks are given at the start of the semester by both 1st and 2nd year visual arts and sound art Columbia University M.F.A. students, alongside faculty and staff. They are essentially 3 minute introductions to people’s practices.
[2] “What it Means To Be Cute” panel in August 2023 with Christina Yuna Ko, Lulu Yao Gioiello and Amy Yao moderated by Sophia Park at GYOPO.
[3] “Going Dark: The Contemporary Figure at the Edge of Visibility” was a group exhibition that was on view at the Guggenheim Museum from 10/20/23–04/07/24.
[4] “My Beating Heart/ Mi corazón latiente” was a solo exhibition of Pepón Osorio at the New Museum that was on view 06/29/23-09/17/23.
[5] Recording of Enriquez’s work “Guard Dog” barking.
♡ Erica Kanesaka ▶
✱ Cute Image References
☁ Usakumya and Kumakumya, the mascots of the lolita brand Baby, the Stars Shine Bright.
☁ Gothic & Lolita Bible, capturing old-school lolita fashion.
☁ Licca-chan doll (I had several as a child along with my Barbies!).
☁ Neighborhood Story and other manga by Ai Yazawa.
☁ Artwork: “A Call from the Abyss” by Aya Takano.
☁ Rune Naito panda, an example of vintage kawaii.
✱ Notes
[1] Sianne Ngai, Our Aesthetic Categories: Zany, Cute, Interesting. (Harvard University Press, 2012).
[2] Christine Yano, Pink Globalization: Hello Kitty’s Trek across the Pacific. (Duke University Press, 2013).
[3] Pucca is a South Korean cartoon character developed by the company VOOZ Character System.
[3.1] Pucca 한국어 나무 위키.
[3.2] Pucca Wikipage.
[4] Michelle Zauner, Crying in H Mart. (Alfred A. Knopf, 2021).
[5] Erica Kanesaka, “The Mixed-Race Fantasy Behind Kawaii Aesthetics,” Catapult (January 2023).
[6] Lolita fashion is a street style that emerged in Japan during the 1990s in response to the rise of cuteness. It is known for a combination of cuteness, elegance and modesty and has many sub-categories.
[7] Prof. Kanesaka has designed and teaches a Literature & Cultural Studies course at Emory University titled “Cute Studies”.
[8] “What it Means To Be Cute” panel in August 2023 with Christina Yuna Ko, Lulu Yao Gioiello and Amy Yao moderated by Sophia Park at GYOPO.
[9] Boba liberalism is a term to describe a type of Asian American-specific liberalism that aligns itself with popular American liberal values but does not engage with criticisms of imperialism and capitalism.
[10] Kogepan is a San-X character that is a burnt red bean bread bun who lives in a Japanese bakery trying to fit in and make friends with the other bread items.
[11] Angry Asian Womxn is a community supporting safety, wellness and community for Asian, Pacific Islander, Arab and MENA women/femmes/gender expansive folks based in NYC.
[12] Esther Bunny.
[13] The MIMI doll was made in Korea in 1982 and her name is derived from the Chinese characters (美美), which mean “Pretty, Pretty”.
[14] “CUTE” was an exhibition centered on exploring the force of cuteness in contemporary culture at the Somerset House in London, UK running from Jan 25 - Apr 14, 2024.
[15] “CUTE” exhibition catalogue.
[16] Shigetaka Kurita: Emoji, Paul Galloway (New York: Museum of Modern Art, 2023), 9781633451490.
[17] “Shigetaka Kurita, Emoji, 1998-1999”, MoMA.
[18] Kaomoji is a way of portraying facial expressions using text characters and was invented in the 1980s in Japan.
♡ CFGNY ▶
✱ Notes
[1] Édouard Glissant, “For Opacity,” in Poetics of Relation (The University of Michigan Press, 1997), 189-194.
[2] This is in reference to a meme of the character Charlie from the show “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”.
[3] Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, Touching Feeling: Affect, Pedagogy, Performativity (Duke University Press, 2003).
[4] Hito Steyerl, “In Defense of the Poor Image,” e-flux Journal, no. 10 (November 2009).
[5] Hammer Museum is where CFGNY held their exhibition “Refashioning: CFGNY & Wataru Tominaga” running from June 9 - August 4, 2024.
[6] This is in reference to CFGNY’s work “Contrast Form Gestalt” in Making Home—Smithsonian Design Triennial.
♡ Stella Zhong ▶
✱ Cute Image References
☁ Only one milk dud :(.
✱ Notes
[1] Stella gave an artist talk for NewCrits with Ajay Kurian in October 2023.
[2] Danni Shen, “Stella Zhong: Meticulous sculptures of otherworldly forms.”, BOMB Magazine (2022).
[3] In Stella Zhong’s 2021 exhibition “comet without a tail” at Chapter NY gallery, she built out a floor that had small recessed pockets or holes in which you could see tiny abstracted objects..
♡ Larissa Pham ▶
✱ Cute Image References
☁ Sylvanian friends.
☁ Yui Suzuki, Loki's capture jar (2024).
☁ Bunny with knife.
☁ Yui Suzuki, Dogs that played to their heart's content jar (2024).
☁ Pillbug meme.
✱ Notes
[1] Larissa Pham, Pop Song. (Catapult, 2021).
[2] Animarx Crossing.
[3] Animal Crossing is a series of games where players make friends with cute animal villagers and carry out various activities like fishing, bug catching, and decorating to create a world within the game.
[4] Aggretsuko is a Sanrio character described as “a single, 25 year-old red panda. Yet despite her cute appearance, something deep within her is filled with rage”. In her Netflix show, you see her deal with the stresses and joys within everyday life arising from the workplace, family, romantic relationships, and friendship.
[5] Diane Zhou.