>[!NOTE]+ Meta Author:: [[Hyeyoung Cho]] Reference:: https://garlandmag.com/loop/universities-in-korean-craft/ Date:: [[2021-03-17]] Tags:: #warp/talk #SouthKorea #education WeftLinks:: [[Reinventing the Wheel]] ### Summary ![[HyeyoungCho.pdf]] [[Hyeyoung Cho]] presented a story of South Korean craft that emphasised the role of the state. In her telling, Korea had been used as a craft production facility during Japanese colonisation in the early twentieth century, which led to a loss of cultural identity. Soon after the Korean War, the government created university departments to encourage craft production. The first of these was the Ceramics Research Institute at Ewha Woman's University in 1958, which under the leadership of John Koo Hwang emphasised surface design. Alternative ceramic styles emerged when other departments were established, including Hongij University, Seoul National University and Kookmin University (from which Hyeyoung believes the best makers currently emerge). This development was significantly assisted by support and exchange with universities in the USA. [[Hyeyoung Cho]] felt that masters were acknowledged sufficiently during the rise of university craft education. They were often used for training, but rarely recognised in exhibitions. She continues to include masters in her own curatorial activity. The Seoul Olympics in 1988 opened South Korea up to the world. This was associated with a renaissance of Korean ceramics. Massive funding was directed to the establishment of the Gyeonggi Ceramics Biennale, which brought the world of ceramics to South Korea. In reflecting on the current situation, Hyeyoung felt that the lockdown has affected Korean craft very badly. She said that Koreans are very physical people, who think with their hands. While new venues like Clubhouse are very popular, people today are afraid to go to galleries. [[Hyeyoung Cho]]'s talk was particularly relevant given the precarity of craft courses in many universities in other countries that are financially stressed as a result of the COVID pandemic. While emphasising their positive role in generating a strong creative culture, she also revealed implicit hierarchies that devalued the practical knowledge as held by masters. In looking for sustainable models in craft education post-COVID, the masters and their workshops could play a larger role. This entails broadening out understanding of knowledge beyond its abstract form usually found in academic publications. <div style="display: block; position: relative; width: 100%; height: 0px; --aspect-ratio:9/16; padding-bottom: calc(var(--aspect-ratio) * 100%);"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.be/embed/Fab6fowgKP4" allow="fullscreen" style="position: absolute; top: 0px; left: 0px; height: 100%; width: 100%;"></iframe></div>