Honorary Reporter Preeti Rawat from India

Photos = Charlotte Leseault

If you've walked on the streets of Seoul and chanced upon little motivational notes, you've spotted the Happy Seoul Project. Started by French illustrator Charlotte Leseault in March 2019, it aims to cheer up people by spreading positivity, giving them strength and reminding them that they are precious humans.

Majoring in art history and children's literature, Charlotte first visited Korea for two months after graduating from college as a treat for herself since she was a fan of both K-pop and the country. A resident of Korea since 2009, she draws "small, cute and childlike-styled illustrations" under the alias Yeah Low Dots, a play on the word "yellow," the latter being the color of smiley faces that are her trademark. Her work captures her daily life and thoughts as a single millennial living in a megacity.

The following are excerpts from an interview with her.

What inspired you to start Yeah Low Dots?
I started drawing small illustrations about three to four years ago and decided to share them on Instagram. At the time, I had few tools so I drew on paper and used apps on my phone to add colors. Over time, I invested in better tools and taught myself how to use digital illustration software. Most of my drawings are created in a few minutes. I like to illustrate my thoughts that are influenced by current trends and issues. In addition, language plays a big part as I'm a non-native speaker of both English and Korean, I often have to use mnemonics to remember words that give me most of my ideas.

Describe the Happy Seoul Project.
I started my project in early 2019 but had the idea for a while before making the leap. As much as I love living in Seoul, it's not always easy being alone abroad. It can get lonely, especially in winter. I got quite homesick, but when I do, my getaway has always been going on walks. I enjoy walking around the city, listening to music and sipping coffee. Seoul is so vast that I always end up discovering new places, and it's the perfect city for wandering around and getting lost in. On the streets, I took pictures of cute things I saw, and one day, I thought that I could put cute things around for other people like me. That's when I got the idea.

The Happy Seoul Project, started by Charlotte Leseault in 2019, aims to cheer up residents of Seoul and bring a smile to their faces.

What was the process like of putting this project together?

I was very nervous the first time I put a slip of paper on the street. I put little thought into the technicalities at that time and just wanted to share nice words with strangers. A day or two later, I realized that I could use Instagram to share and spread my messages to an even larger audience. That's when I created my account and decided to write my handle on the papers. Soon, I received messages from people taking pictures and thanking me for making their day brighter. This gave me a new sense of purpose. 

Over time, I changed a few things. I added yellow smileys and started using sticker paper to paste my messages on the ground since people always look down while using their smartphones. This was challenging because all my notes are handmade and handwritten. I feel this makes each one is unique, and I like the idea that each note will fade and disappear with time.

How do you come up with your messages and illustrations? Is it spontaneous?
For the Happy Seoul Project, the messages are mostly common cheering words. I like to write English words in Hangeul and vice versa. It made sense to use Korean, but as I wanted to reach out to everyone, including expats like me in Seoul, using English felt necessary as it's an international language. I feel that more than the messages, the unexpected encounters with them make them more powerful. People don't usually expect someone telling them that they look cute when they smile on their way to work or while waiting for the bus to return home after a bad day.

As for my Yeah Low Dots illustrations, I think of ideas spontaneously, yet boredom plays a big part. I don't often come up with ideas when busy, but when I have a day off and go for a walk, a wave of them sudden pops up in my head. I realized that boredom is necessary for my creative process. It's ironic because I used to dread being bored, but now I long for it.

Charlotte Leseault uses the alias Yeah Low Dots.

How has the response to the project been?

The response has been great so far. I've had many great memories from my project and received many touching messages. I also met new people who became friends thanks to this project, which is probably one of the best parts.

Are you happy with the way this project has turned out? 
I'm happy with the project, but after working on it for two years, I want to renew it in some form. On its first anniversary, I asked my subscribers to send messages they wanted me to write on notes. I also want to get more interactive, so I'm working on a new part of the project that hopefully sees the light of day next year. In addition, I've had many requests to sell merchandise as people ask me where they can purchase my art. I've also seen my illustrations used without my permission and sold online. So I'm considering launching my own brand soon.

Do you have a concluding message to Korea.net's readers?
We put a lot of pressure on ourselves to be happy and forget that happiness comes in small moments like waking up to sunlight, enjoying a good cup of coffee or listening to a song we love. It's like looking at a painting. The entire picture might not be bright, but a closer look shows small details filled with pure light. You can choose to focus on these rather than being overwhelmed by the whole picture. Sadness isn't something we should avoid at all costs and instead should be accepted as a necessary counterpart of happiness.

kalhong617@korea.kr 

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.