AsiaPOP! is returning for its second year at the University of Idaho. The symposium will be from Aug. 19 to Sept. 13 and the theme this year is the “Korean Wave.”
“The point of this symposium is to get University of Idaho students, faculty and staff interested in Asia and appreciate Asian pop-culture and as a purpose of study,” Jeff Kyong-McClain the Director of the Habib Institute for Asian Studies at UI said.
The event is hosting three galleries. Two of the galleries are in the Reflections Gallery in the ISUB including Hayoun Kwon, who is a virtual reality artist and a nominee for the 2024 Korea artist of the year and with the “Korean Wave: Korean Culture Goes Global” gallery. The third gallery is in Ridenbaugh Hall and features artwork from graduate students and art faculty from Chonnam National University. These galleries are open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. AsiaPOP! is also partnering with the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre where they are showing free movies.
The event will also feature keynote speakers such as Ji-yoon An, an assistant professor of modern Korean popular culture at the University of British Columbia, as well as Justin Chon, a writer, director and actor. Hayoun Kwon, an artist, and Jungmin Kwon, an associate professor of digital culture and film culture at Portland State University, will also be featured in AsiaPOP! events.
The events for the next couple weeks are as follows:
Sept. 3
At 7 p.m. the Kenworthy will be showing “BLACKPINK: WORLD TOUR [BORN PINK] IN CINEMAS,” a concert movie of Korean pop girl group Blackpink.
Sept. 5
From 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m, there will be an Asian Studies open house in the Administration building in room 204 for students interested in learning more about the Asian Studies minor.
Sept. 10
At 7 p.m. there will be an event, Introducing K-Pop, hosted at the Kenworthy. The documentary film, “Us and Them: Korean Indie Rock in a K-Pop World” will be shown, and Korean punk band God of Universe will speak.
Sept. 11
At 10:30 a.m. a “U.S. Korea Economic Relations” panel will be in the Administration building in room 204.
At 12:30 p.m. there will be a Q and A with God of Universe in the Lionel Hampton building in room 222.
At 2:30 p.m. Kwon will speak on “K(Q)ueer -pop: Queer (In)visibility in Korean Popular Culture” in the Clearwater Room in the ISUB.
Sept. 12
At 2 p.m. An will speak on “The Evolution of K-Drama Romances” in the Clearwater Room in the ISUB.
At 4 p.m. Chon will speak on “Exploring Honesty in Representation” in the Summit Room of the ISUB.
More information about the events can be found here.
Andrea Roberts can be reached at [email protected].