Not long ago, as part of the Creative Saturday family festival organized by the Sakhalin Regional Art Museum, there was a performance by Eugene Kim and Dareena May. The half an hour performance was excellent. Eugene played the guitar and Dareena sang. In the musical field, a “cover” is a new performance of an existing song by someone other than the original performer, using musical techniques that reflect the musician’s individuality. The duo performed several songs, there were covers of foreign and Russian songs. One and the same composition, performed with different emotions, can sound completely different.
When I asked Eugene for an interview, the business card he handed me had only a QR code with his logo on it.
“After you scan the QR code, you can see information about me. On my website you can learn about what I like and what I am passionate about, ” Eugene says.
I took the business card, went to the website, and it really became clear to me what Eugene loves and what he is passionate about. He plays guitar, professionally engaged in photography, shoots short videos, creates leather goods, writes poetry and makes postcards. Despite my expectations that such a creative person would surely have his own business, Eugene is an office worker. Since the end of 2022, he has been working as a specialist in the Administrative Hub at Sakhalin Energy LLC.
Eugene, who will turn 30 in the fall, was born in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, but lived in Kholmsk until he was eight years old. Eugene’s mother is Russian and his father is Korean. After his parents divorce, he moved to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk with his mother. He graduated from school №16 with average grades. Everything changed when he became a student of Oriental and African Studies (Japanese language) at Sakhalin State University. He enjoyed studying and actively participated in various university events, including three times being the host of the Korean language contest. He graduated from the University with honors.
He also was granted a scholarship from the Overseas Koreans Foundation. In 2015, he interned for three months at Hokkai Gakuen University (Sapporo, Japan), where he met a Korean student. They are still friends to this day. Eugene says he doesn’t know Korean, but spontaneously says a few words in Korean with skillful pronunciation, as he learned them as part of his study of Oriental languages, and has heard his great-grandmother speaks Korean since childhood. He says it was very interesting for him to watch his elderly Korean compatriots speak, mixing Russian and Korean.
Eugene plays acoustic guitar. He did not get professional musical education. By high school, he became interested in music and started practicing on his own. At the time, his friend was playing guitar in a music band, which sparked his interest. He played irregularly until 2018, but after moving to Japan, he plunged into lessons, shorting lonely evenings, while working as a transport manager in a travel agency in Japan.
Before graduating from university in 2016, I was employed as an IT analyst at Sakhalin Energy Investment Company Ltd. and after 2 years of working there, I realized that I didn’t want to lose my language skills and wanted to work in a profession with Japanese language. I found out about a vacancy in a Japanese company, sent a request, had an online interviews and got the job. I lived in Osaka city and traveled a lot in the southern part of Japan. “I am passionate about photography. I took a lot of pictures during that time, ” says Eugene, talking about his favorite hobbies.
Before moving to Japan, he discovered another hobby and started creating leather goods. He makes belts, business card holders, notebook covers, cutlery covers, etc. Handmade only, without using a sewing machine.
“The leather goods I create look elegant and stylish because they are all made with care and attention to details. I started doing this because it was hard to find accessories that fit my personal standards of production quality and design, so I decided to try to make it by myself. I bought materials, tools, opened the internet and started creating. I finished my first items by the morning of the day I moved to Japan. I continued to improve my skills there”.
Eugene, who’s full of creative energy, also writes poetry. His first poem was written not in Russian, but in English. He also composes songs. He has not yet been published anywhere, but in the creation of video clips he is no worse than a professional. His various hobbies and diverse activities have long gone beyond amateur. He would like to sing more, but he doesn’t have time to rehearse, so he only takes part as a vocalist in a few songs during performances.
Another hobby is making postcards: he prints them in a printing office, using his photos. And he does not sell these cards, but signs and gives them to those he likes and those he cares about. Because handwritten words show attitude and emphasize their importance. Whatever he creates, produces or writes with his talent, he does it sincerely and with a heart.
Eugene is a professional in his field. After returning from Japan, he worked for Rosneft company. Then he was offered a job at the Ministry of Economic Development of the Sakhalin Region, where he worked for two years in the Japan cooperation development department. Due to circumstances, the department was disbanded and Eugene was transferred to another department, but he did not like the job and moved to Sakhalin Energy LLC.
Eugene’s daily life is very busy because he works hard and devotes time to his hobbies. All the topics he talks about are diverse and interesting. Also, he tries to maintain strong family relationships.
When I asked him, “What are your favorite quotes?” he pulled out a small notebook from his bag and showed me a list of his favorite expressions that he had written out during his university days. It’s wonderful to see a young man trying to stay on track and building his own life using these quotes as a moral guide. He expressed his motto for life in the following words:
“Live the life you will remember. Act in a way you won’t regret. Be unique. Love, create and be happy.”