A Conversation with Shini Park — East & West post - East & West

Shini Park is the digital storytelling, super stylish creative behind CUBICLE, a popular website that champions masters of visual arts and pursues new digital storytelling innovation, on the web, on social media and in print. We had the pleasure talking with Shini about her career beginnings, cultural identity, the biggest challenges she has faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, her future plans and much more.

E&W: Hi Shini, I would like to start by saying what an honor it is to Interview you. How have you been holding up during these uncertain times ?

Shini Park: It’s my privilege to be interviewed, thank you! Indeed, it’s been a few rough months, but I’m realisig that I’ve learned more about myself during this forced ‘break’ than I have ever before. I’ve also been using this opportunity to work on passion projects and catching up on much-needed admin, not to mention actually slowing down and taking a breather for once (fact: naps are addictive).

E&W: Could you tell us how you got started in digital storytelling?

Shini Park: In the fear of sounding old, I was very ‘online’ at a time when it was odd to be online (to my parent’s demise). Think year 2000, Microsoft Paint, dial-up - every kilobyte costing as much as seconds on a phone call. The internet hadn’t been a necessity of human life when I was 13, but I remember draining the colour cartridge of our poor inkjet printer at home printing out a 30-page Britney Spears ‘magazine’ that I filled with downloaded (this alone took days) images and designed in a word processor. As a teenager I carried a portable webcam before digital cameras were readily available, and then graduated to a point-and-shoot which I shot on until it physically broke down. I used Christina Aguilera as a sort of ‘muse’ for editorials, graphic design and websites until I was 17. When I turned 18 this playtime landed me a job with a Dutch web design company. Digital storytelling was like second skin to me by the time I opened Park & Cube in 2008, a personal blog that documented everything I loved about London and being newly independent.

E&W: What inspired you to launch Park & Cube / CUBE Collective ?

Shini Park: Park & Cube came about like a product of coming-to-age. July of 2008 I’d turned 22, freshly out the 'nest’ with my own pocket money to spend and no curfew. Shoes were the new boys, and I was stunned by a new city that provided inspiration at every corner when it came to personal expression. I spent days sitting by a window in a café in Shoreditch watching stylish passersby, and then went home lusting for the same Barbour wax jacket and Acne boots that I saw being worn on the street. In the beginning of 2009 I shared a DIY tutorial of an Alexander Wang studded bag on the site, which went viral on the blogosphere. This first DIY tutorial defined Park & Cube - it was my own way of taking control and ownership of something I couldn’t afford just yet. Same applied to photography, writing, graphic design.

I couldn’t afford a photographer, so I did it myself. Naturally over the years I was able to practice a lot of different skillsets and in 2015, I launched CUBE Collective with a small team, a 360-degree atelier that offered everything I’d learned to brands and clients that sought authentic digital storytelling.

E&W: in 2018 you moved on from Park & Cube and have created a new platform named CUBICLE, why did you decide shift platforms and how does CUBICLE differ from Park & Cube?

Shini Park: I spent years using myself as a subject/‘lab rat’ on Park & Cube: learning about myself, pushing personal boundaries, sharpening my crafts. In 2018, approaching the tenth year of experimenting, I finally felt the need to give back. The launch of CUBICLE was a personal and professional metamorphosis; a conclusion to a decade of trials and education. CUBICLE champions masters of visual arts that had inspired me in the ten years of exploring myself, and every day we pursue new digital storytelling innovation, on the web, on social media, in print. As a team we don’t look towards trends or shiny plastic innovation, but focus on telling stories that marry both history and future. The main difference would be that CUBICLE is no longer a journal (I now keep personal antics to the @Shini.Park Instagram), However, as it represents my visual dreams and aspirations in its entirety—it’s equally ‘me’ as Park & Cube ever was, if not more.

E&W: As a creative, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced due to COVID-19?

Shini Park: The first and foremost drawback I had was that all shoot productions (both editorial and client) had to be postponed or cancelled. It was brutal, in all honesty. Being on set and physically creating something had always been a reliable way to maintain creative juices bubbling (not to mention it’s the absolute best way to bond as a team). So, with all shoots cancelled, we - as a team - felt a little deflated, and I found myself quite antsy, not being able to expend the pent up creative energy. Eventually I invested in a home studio, which thankfully re-started the engine!

E&W: What does your typical work day look like?

Shini Park: No two days look alike for me (lots of toes in different professions!) but my one constant is that my husband always brings breakfast in bed and we watch whatever TV series we’re into at the moment for the first hour of the day. After, it can be a full day of emails and creative work at my desk, or a day on set/location shooting for the next volume of CUBICLE, or I could be on my way to the airport.

E&W: What are some of the biggest changes that have occurred in the digital landscape since you began your career and how have you adapted to these changes?

Shini: Perhaps the biggest change in the digital landscape has been monetisation of content, which introduced a need for quantity over quality, a cutthroat attitude, and watering-down of authentic content. ‘Ulterior motives’, basically. There’s also a lot more players in the field now. I can’t lie and say that it didn’t affect me personally, but CUBICLE was my solution to slowing down social media content consumption. It’s also my haven and a solid ‘home-sweet- home’, if things ever go south. Warning: don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

E&W: Do you have any dream projects or collaborations?

Shini: I’d truly love to work more in moving image and cinema, and my wish is to work with directors like Luca Gudagnino, cinematographers such as Emmanuel Lubezki (The Revenant, 2015) or actors like Adrien Brody.

E&W: You were born in Seoul, raised in Warsaw and are now based in London. How have these experiences shaped your cultural identity and would you consider yourself a third culture kid?

Shini: I am indeed a third culture kid when it comes to not being of the same culture of my own parents, but in a more micro level, a lot of different environmental factors other than my place of growth attribute to my personality. For example, I strongly believe I learned work ethics from my South Korean parents, but I take on importance of history from my time in Warsaw, and my ballsy confidence is from spending my 20’s in London. Moreover, my style leans towards a scandi-normcore being based in Denmark now.

E&W: How has your cultural identity inspired your work and personal style ?

Shini: Alas, I guess I’m a bit of a chameleon? I love playing with the context of the location and surrounding—for example in Rome, I like to go full out ‘La Dolce Vita’, whereas in Copenhagen I love my scandi- chic look pared down with sneakers and a trench coat. In Paris I ramp up the all-black, and in Seoul it’s all about edgy streetwear. I blame my love for storytelling! (If I were to read into the psychology of the situation, I suppose I also chase the need to ‘fit in’, and as a first generation immigrant kid)

E&W: What are your thoughts on Korea’s growing fashion industry ? Do you have a favorite Korean designer?

Shini: South Korea has always been quick to trends, so I’m not surprised they’ve quickly clued up on what works within the global fashion industry. I’m seeing so many exciting new brands earning cult status quickly with new and edgy designs—some of my favourites today is Marge Sherwood (leather accessories), LVIR and Gentle Monster.

E&W: The lack of diversity and inclusion within the fashion industry has been gaining a lot of attention lately. What are your thoughts on this and what advice would you give brands that want to become more inclusive?

Shini: Despite the output being material ‘clothes’, fashion is a people’s industry at the end of the day. The fuel and driving force of the fashion industry is essentially people and the stories of people that wear the clothes: the designer, the customer, the ambassador. So naturally, a company should be build on the context of its heritage— the location, the local community and the times. The company culture, in turn, should reflect exactly this. I advise every brand to ‘love thy neighbour’ before even dreaming of going global, hoping that the brand practices equality in terms of hiring of races, genders, body shapes and people of all walks of life.

E&W: Where do you see the future of fashion post COVID-19?

Shini: Reduce, re-use and recycle: A worthy battle cry that had always been drowned out by the noise of capitalism and the sheer speed that the fashion industry was operating at. In a post-COVID-19 world, I hope this is the new norm. I’ve been loving the new, reduced, digital approach to fashion week that exercises creativity while producing less waste.

E&W: What is one lesson 2020 has taught you about yourself and the fashion industry?

Shini: 2020 teaches that we do not have to be in the centre of it all, at all times, and that you do not become irrelevant if you take a well- deserved rest. This year has been awful in some ways but enlightening in a lot of others, and I personally love how it forced us to slow down, re-think and reinvent our ways.

E&W: What can we expect from you in the next year? Do you plan on releasing your own collection?

Shini: I am currently restructuring the company and moving our EU office in light of the pandemic, but we have lots of CUBICLE product releases scheduled in the coming year, so I’m so excited to be working on that!

E&W: what advice you give to aspiring digital storytellers, graphic designees and photographers hoping to break their way into the creative industry?

Shini: While notoriously cutthroat, the creative industry is also very sensitive and recognises reputation like a memory foam mattress! Being kind and humble goes a long way, and working your ass off is a prerequisite, of course.

POST DETAILS:

Written by: Jourdie