In the summer of 2024, I had the incredible opportunity to study in Seoul, South Korea, for a little over a month. I took two courses while I was there: traditional Korean Painting and Visual Journal.

seoul, south korea

For one of my projects in Visual Journal, I created a field journal of native plants that I found around Seoul. The book was created out of watercolor paper, dried plants, Sumi ink, and pigment.

visual journal

Two watercolor paintings on a notebook with a beige background. The left painting features a mix of yellow, green, and blue watercolor splotches. The right painting has a mix of red, blue, green, and purple watercolor splotches with a red rectangular stamp containing Korean characters.
Page with botanical illustrations, including a detailed sketch of a flower on the left side within a blue border labeled in Korean, and a painting of a branch with black berries and red stems on the right side with a red-bordered label in Korean.
A sketch of two flowers on the left page, with Korean text in a red box. The right page has a dried flower with wilted petals and scattered seed or flower parts around it.
A glued collage of dry hydrangea flowers and green leaves on a pink textured background, with a printed drawing of hydrangea flowers with green leaves and a red stamp with Korean characters.
A drawing of a blue magnolia flower on the left and a black and white sketch of leaves hanging from a branch on the right, with Korean labels above each image.
Open notebook with a colored illustration of a spotted orange and black lily on the left page and a black and white sketch of the same lily on the right page.

For my second project, I created a storyboard for a graphic novel called Found.

Illustration of a woman with wavy hair and a bird with a large beak, surrounded by colorful, abstract patterns, and the word "FOUND" at the bottom.
Illustration of a woman with flowing hair floating above a bird. The words 'RUMI' and 'FOUND' are written in red text on the right side, and a yellow circle with text on the left page reads 'FOUND CONCEPT BOOK WRITTEN AND ILLUSTRATED BY ASIA ROTHENBERGER'.
A illustrated scene from a story featuring a girl named Rumi on a bench under a tree, accompanied by a crow and a black bird. She has long, flowing hair and is surrounded by nature, with a grassy landscape. The scene shows her in a contemplative moment, with detailed sketches of her face and surroundings.
A colored illustration of a fairy with curly hair, wings, and a flowing dress, standing on one leg with arms outstretched. The background features swirling lines and a cloud.
Traditional ink painting of a landscape featuring a large, twisted tree with spreading branches, rocks, and three small figures sitting on a stone in a natural setting.

traditional korean painting

A black and white ink painting of a serene outdoor scene with two trees, a stone wall, a stone bench, and falling snow.
A watercolor painting of various objects including a book, a mug, a book, two orange lilies, an apple, an open notebook, and artistic red stamps, with handwritten notes and sketches in the background.
A black ink painting of grass and small flowers on a light fabric background.