Exploring Identity Through Art: Christine Sun Kim and Amy Sherald

Art is a powerful way to show who we are, where we come from, and how we see the world. Recently, I visited the Whitney Museum of American Art, where I got to see the work of two artists, Christine Sun Kim and Amy Sherald. Both artists explore ideas about identity and society, but they do it in different ways. After seeing their work, I learned how art can tell personal stories and challenge the way society expects us to think.

Christine Sun Kim: Art and Sound Without Sound

Christine Sun Kim is a Deaf artist who explores what sound means, especially for people who can't hear it. In her exhibition All Day All Night, I realized how important sound is in our lives and how much we take it for granted.

Kim uses different ways to show what sound might look like for her. She turns sound into images using things like music notes, American Sign Language, and other visual methods. For example, in her work Degrees of Deaf Rage in Everyday Situations (2018), Kim uses charcoal and pastels to show the emotions Deaf people might feel, like frustration or anger, when they can’t communicate easily. Her work challenges the idea that sound is only something you can hear, it shows that sound can also be something you can see, feel, and experience in different ways.

Kim also creates installations that produce sound without actual noise. One piece, Community Sigh (2025), records the sighs of 66 Deaf people. These sighs represent shared feelings of frustration and challenges that many Deaf people face. Even though these people can’t hear the sighs, they still share a meaningful experience through them.

What Kim’s art does is more than just show what it's like to be Deaf. It makes us think about how we experience the world differently. Her work challenges us to reconsider what it means to "hear" or “listen.”

Image: Christine Sun Kim, Community Sigh, 2025, Mixed media installation, Dimensions variable.

Amy Sherald: Rewriting the Story of Black Identity

Amy Sherald, in her exhibition American Sublime, takes a different approach to exploring identity. She focuses on Black Americans and how their stories are often overlooked in art and culture. Sherald uses portrait painting to celebrate the beauty, individuality, and strength of Black people.

One of her most famous works is her portrait of Michelle Obama, the former First Lady of the United States. In the painting, Michelle Obama stands confidently in a beautiful dress with a powerful expression. Sherald uses a unique technique where she paints her subjects with gray skin tones. This makes them appear free from the usual expectations placed on Black people in traditional art. The gray tone also makes her subjects feel more universal, as if their stories could belong to anyone.

Sherald’s portraits aren’t just about how people look, they show how people feel and who they are inside. She uses bright colors and bold patterns to reflect the personality and character of the person. Each portrait tells a story, making us think about who they really are and how society sees them. Sherald’s goal is to show Black Americans as complex people, not just as stereotypes.

What I found so powerful about Sherald’s work is how it changes the usual idea of portrait painting. Instead of focusing on the person’s wealth or social status, she shows them as they truly are.

Image: Amy Sherald, Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama, 2018, Oil on canvas, 52 × 66 inches.

Comparing Christine Sun Kim and Amy Sherald: Two Different Paths to the Same Truth

At first, it might seem like Christine Sun Kim and Amy Sherald are doing very different things with their art. Kim uses sound and visual symbols to show what it's like to be Deaf, while Sherald paints portraits of Black Americans to challenge stereotypes. But as I looked closer, I realized both artists are doing something similar: they are both changing the way we think about and understand identity.

Kim challenges the idea that sound is something you can only hear, while Sherald questions how Black people are often shown in art history. Both artists are making us think about how art can help us understand the world better, and how we should see people for who they really are, not just how society expects us to see them.

Another thing they both do is make art that feels personal, but also speaks to everyone. Kim’s art about being Deaf reflects her own experience, but it also connects with anyone who feels like they don't fit in. Sherald’s portraits are personal to the people she paints, but they also represent Black Americans as a whole, challenging us all to think about how race and identity affect our lives.

Conclusion: Art Helps Us See the World in a New Way

What I learned from seeing the exhibitions of Christine Sun Kim and Amy Sherald is how powerful art can be when it makes us think differently. Kim’s work made me think about how we experience sound and how much we rely on hearing. Sherald’s paintings made me reflect on how society shapes people’s identities, and how important it is to see people for who they truly are.

Both artists use their art to share important stories about identity and society. Whether it’s through sound or paint, Kim and Sherald show us that art is not just about what we see, it’s about how we think, feel, and experience the world. Their work teaches us that everyone has a unique story to tell, and art is the way we can start to understand and appreciate those stories.