The Korea University and SOAS Joint Colloquium on Traditional Korean Studies is a full-day scholarly exchange bringing together researchers from Korea University’s Institute for Global Humanities Research and Collaboration and the SOAS Centre of Korean Studies. The programme features two keynote lectures and two research sessions covering a broad range of topics, including Korean reception … [Read More]
Venue: SOAS
10 Thornhaugh Street | Russell Square | London WC1H 0XG | [Map]
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How has East Asia responded to the fallout from the war against Iran?
The joint US-Israeli air campaign against Iran has not only resulted in the effective closing of the Strait of Hormuz but also changed the world. With vibrant and trade-dependent economies, the major countries in East Asia – China, Japan and Korea – are deeply affected. They are confronted with much more than just disruptions in … [Read More]
Art and Political Allegiance: Dream Journey to the Peach Blossom Land and the Elite Culture of Fifteenth-Century Joseon
This paper analyses the political dimensions of Dream Journey to the Peach Blossom Land (Mongyudowondo, 夢遊桃源圖, 1447) through the lens of art and power. The fifteenth century was Joseon’s Renaissance: under the reign of King Sejong, the court became a centre of extraordinary cultural flourishing. Yet the transfer of power following Sejong’s death was convulsive. … [Read More]
Royal Joseon Sogyokso and Popcho: The Philosophical Encumbrance of Sarim in the Kimyo Literati Purge (1519)
The early modern history of the Joseon dynasty (1392–1910) in East Asia is often depicted as an era of political conflict between the king, the Hun’gu faction, and the Sarim faction. The four major Sahwa (literati purges) reflect its seriousness through which Neo-Confucian scholars were sacrificed by the punishments of execution, exile, or dismissal. The … [Read More]
Book launch: Vestiges of the Three Kingdoms of Ancient Korea
In this book launch event, Remco Breuker, Boudewijn Walraven and Grace Koh will introduce and discuss their recent publication, Vestiges of the Three Kingdoms of Ancient Korea: A Translation of the Samguk yusa. Vestiges of the Three Kingdoms of Ancient Korea (Samguk yusa) is the first annotated English translation of one of the most important premodern … [Read More]
Book Talk – Relational Pasts: The Conflictual International Politics of Memory and the Japan-South Korea History Problem
Many international relationships have a difficult history – of wars, of atrocities, of colonial subjugation – but only some of these nations clash over that history in a way that profoundly affects their relationship still today. Why, for example, do France and Germany or the United Kingdom and India have a largely positive relationship not … [Read More]
Haenyeo Voices: Merging Tradition and Science to Monitor Reef Changes
The Haenyeo Voices project explores the effects of environmental change on Jeju Island’s reefs by combining Haenyeo divers’ Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) with scientific monitoring, using 3D modelling, to assess transformations and foster interdisciplinary collaboration. Professor Niki Alsford and Dr Sojin Lim will draw upon more than four years of ethnographic work with Haenyeo communities … [Read More]
The Power of the Clan: Contesting Kinship and the Making of South Korea’s Fifteenth President
Clans have played a significant role in Korean society for centuries. Even in contemporary times, they maintain their relevance by affording people social, political, and economic capital. Despite their emphasis on legitimate bloodlines, however, clans are also imagined communities as kinship in Korea is more often than not based on claims of spurious nature. Thus, … [Read More]
SOAS Kimchi Festival
Kimchi is Korea’s most iconic traditional dish, made from fermented vegetables and a variety of spices. With its distinctive flavour and deep cultural roots, kimchi is not only a symbol of Korean cuisine but also an important part of everyday life in Korea. To recognise the cultural and nutritional value of this unique food, Kimchi … [Read More]
An introduction to North Korean art — and challenges in assembling a collection
North Korean art is tied to the genre of socialist realism, producing works of blatant propaganda as well as those with more subtle allegorical story lines. All artists work for the DPRK state, producing artworks which typically portray loyal citizens marching in the vanguard of the revolution, vanquishing enemies and fulfilling quotas. However, within this … [Read More]
Korean culture workshop series at SOAS
Join SOAS and the KCCUK for a series of special events introducing Korean traditional culture, organised by the Centre of Korean Studies, SOAS University of London, in collaboration with the Korean Cultural Centre UK and the Korea Tourism Organization London Office. Samulnori: Korean traditional percussion workshop Key information Instructor: Dr Cholong Sung Date: Thursday, 6 … [Read More]
Bridging Media Art and East Asian Philosophy in the AI Era
Part of the Korea Foundation’s LAB Series in collaboration with SOAS University of London, this lecture by leading scholar and media artist Dr Jinjoon Lee explores ontology in the post-digital age, where myth and his tory, memory and data, identity and anonymity converge. As a “data gardenist,” he investigates the liminoid experience of utopian space … [Read More]
SOAS seminar: New office revolutions
Tropes and technologies for open talk in South Korean offices since the 1980s 1980s South Korea saw many reports promising a ‘new office revolution’ or a ‘new wind’ that would dramatically change South Korean work life through automation (자동화 – jadonghwa). Drawing on newspaper archives from the 1980s and 1990s, this presentation looks at some … [Read More]
SOAS seminar: Fashioning the National Body through Patchwork
A mystic curator, ‘manga kewpies’ and fantastical super-pigs are pieced together in this history of Korean patchwork. Commonly known in South Korea as jogakbo, the national histories of the form arise from a period of cultural preservation under government policy. The written record of the textile that is composed of fragments sutured together can be traced … [Read More]
SOAS–SKKU Symposium on Korean Philosophy and Society
The first symposium organised by jointly the SOAS Centre of Korean Studies and Sungkyungwan University will offer an opportunity for both established academics and PhD students from the two institutions to present their current work on topics related to Korean Confucianism and the roles of women in Chosǒn society. Time Description 1:00pm-1:15pm Opening remarks 1:15pm-3:00pm … [Read More]
Kor;East: Exploring the Reciprocal Impact of Korea and Its Neighbours
Kor;East is a one-day Early Career Researchers Conference showcasing postgraduate and emerging scholars whose work illuminates the complex exchanges between Korea and its regional neighbours. From historical cultural flows and diplomatic relations, to artistic collaborations and diasporic experiences, the programme reveals how Korean history and identity have been shaped by and have in turn shaped … [Read More]