Korean contemporary art forum to open in London

An international conference on Korean contemporary art will be held at the Courtauld Institute of Art and the Victoria and Albert Museum, both in London, from Friday through Sunday, the Arts Council of Korea said Thursday.

The conference is organized jointly by ARKO and the Courtauld Institute of Art, to introduce South Korea’s contemporary art, which organizers say has gained a strong presence on the international contemporary art scene, ahead of the opening of the 2012 London Olympic Games.

The conference will be held under the theme of “Between Tradition, Modernity and Globalization,” and offer a new opportunity to reinterpret modern and contemporary Korean art, the council said.

Leading scholars, artists and curators will discuss Korean art in the context of its history, politics and place in the contemporary art world under the titles of “From Korean ‘modern’ to Tate Modern,” “The tensions between the modern, the contemporary and tradition” and “Globalization and transnational circulation of Korean art.”

Lecturers include Joan Kee, a professor at the University of Michigan; fellow professor Julian Stallabrass from the Courtauld Institute of Art; Kim Chang-dong of the Arts Council of Korea; Kim In-hye from the National Museum of Contemporary Art of Korea; and Lee Jiyoon, head of the SUUM Global Curatorial Project Office in Seoul. 

(Yonhap News)