National museum strengthens network through fellowships program

Participants of the 2019 Museum Network Fellowship Program pose for a photo in front of the 10-story Pagoda from Gyeongcheon Temple site on the first floor of the National Museum of Korea in Yongsan-gu, central Seoul. Courtesy of National Museum of Korea

By Kwon Mee-yoo

The National Museum of Korea (NMK) strives to raise the status of Korean studies globally and has been offering an international fellowship program since 2012.

The 2019 Museum Network Fellowship, designed to promote the advancement of museum-related Korean studies overseas, was held from July 7 to 20.

The annual program features lectures and workshops on a diverse range of themes from Buddhist art, paintings, ceramics and ancient architecture to modern and contemporary art, the archeology of Korea and conservation science as well as a field trip to southern city of Gyeongju, the capital of the ancient Silla Kingdom (57 B.C.-935 A.D.)

The fellowship is open for curators overseas with a degree in Korean or Asian Studies or researchers who have published theses on Korean or Asian studies in the past five years.

This year's 14 participants come from nine countries in various parts of the globe, from Asia and Europe to North and South America.

Two of the participants ― Luk Yu-ping, the Basil Gray Curator of Chinese Painting, prints and Central Asian collection at the British Museum, and Hector Garcia Botero, curator of the Museum of Gold in Bogota, Colombia ― sat down with The Korea Times to talk about their experience in Korea.

"I was fortunate to be invited to this fellowship and very pleased to finally have an opportunity to study Korean art and culture," Luk said.

The Asian art expert has been interested in Korean culture for a while thanks to her colleague in charge of the Korean Collection at the British Museum, but had no further chances to closely study Korean art.

"As a Chinese art researcher, I am somewhat familiar with Korean art as there are interesting exchanges in the two cultures. Korean celadon has some similarities with that of Chinese, but they use different technologies," Luk said.

She said such a fellowship program updates knowledge in curatorial expertise level. "We have a Korean Collection, but the NMK has a much larger collection and we can learn a lot from it. We also can strengthen our displays by learning display methodology here," Luk said.

Garcia's institution at the Museum of Gold has ongoing exchanges. The Museum of Gold collaborated with the NMK for the 2018 exhibit "El Dorado, the Spirit, Gold and the Shaman" and is scheduled to open an exhibit on Korea at the Colombian museum next year. The anthropology specialist is in charge of the Korean exhibition there.

"My museum has been working with other countries to show the different traditional and historical aspects of each country. We have been interacting with the NMK since 2017," Garcia said. "I was thrilled to visit Korea and learn about the country in real life, especially getting to know so many aspects in detail with experts. I am trying to grasp the history and culture of Korea while understanding its complexity."

The two curators said the fellowship program is "incredibly well-rounded," providing knowledge as well as hands-on experience on Korean history and culture.

"Everything is new for me. It is good to know the rigorous scholarship about history and archaeology," Garcia said.

The Colombian curator was particularly moved by their visit to the ancient capital Gyoengju.

"It was out of this world. The visit to Seokguram Grotto was incredible. It was mind-blowing to get into this place and provided me a very special vision," Garcia said. "We were joined by real experts in the field, which takes the experience to another level. It was very productive. Everything is new for me. It is good to know the rigorous scholarship about history and archaeology."

Luk illuminated their tours to galleries of the NMK and its branch in Gyeongju, which was a good introduction to many different aspects of Korean history.

"I had some idea (about Korean art and culture) and this visit made it clearer with better understanding on the richness and diversity of Korean culture," Luk said. "The Silla Kingdom's gold culture is unique and it was interesting to see distinct cultures from different periods."

Participants of the 2019 Museum Network Fellowship Program listen to lectures on Korean art and history at the National Museum of Korea in central Seoul. Courtesy of National Museum of Korea

They also took part in a colloquium on July 16-17, as part of the fellowship program. Garcia presented "Irreplaceable: Technology and Meaning in Ancient Repairs in Pre-Hispanic Colombia," while Luk discussed "New Directions for the Stein Collection from the Silk Roads at the British Museum."

The fellowship has proven its value in building stronger relations with international institutions.

Hector said this kind of exchange is very important not only for people working at museums, but for the public as they can see collections from other countries, mentioning the cultural impact of a museum.

"We first came here for the El Dorado exhibition in Korea, which dealt with identity of Spanish Latin culture. The NMK will hold a celadon exhibition at Colombia next year," Garcia said. "The NMK is in charge of the curatorial concept of the exhibit, but I have to take care of introductory materials for Columbian audiences to introduce the artifacts. I not only learned about those additional materials, but more general things about Korean culture during my visit."

Luk's British Museum has a long-established relationship with the NMK. "When we renovated the Korea Foundation Gallery in 2014, the NMK supported in many ways, including long term loans of Buddha statues and ceramics. This eye-opening experience will provide a broader perspective in continuing the relationship between the two institutions.

"Friendship is not built suddenly, but accumulates over time. Now I gained more knowledge about Korean art and culture, I can keep an eye on a collaboration with Korea when the opportunity comes," Luk said.

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