• Journal of Korean Theatre Studies Association
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• no.52
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• pp.5-59
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• 2014

This paper investigates the development and aesthetics of Korean political theatre from its quickening period 1920s to democratization era 1990s. Political theatre before 90s developed an antithesis resistant movement toward Korean modern history that had been scattered with suppressing political circumstances such as colonial era and dictatorial government, the movement has powerful activity and social influences. Just like the 20 century political theatre had been quickened under the influence of Marxism at Russia and Germany in 1920s, Korea's political theatre began in socialism theatre movement form around the same time. Proletarian theatre groups had been founded in Japan and Korea, and developed into practical movement with organized connection. However, the political theatre movement in Japanese colonial era was an empty vessel makes great sound but not much accomplishments. Most performance had been canceled or disapproved by suppression or censorship of the Japanese Empire. The political theatre in liberation era was the left drama inherited from Proletarian theatre of the colonial era. Korean Theatre alliance took lead the theatrical world unfold activities based on theatre popularization theory such as 'culture activists' taking a jump up the line and 'independent theatre' peeping into production spot as well as the important event, Independence Movement Day Memorial tournament theatre. Since 1947, US army military government in Korea strongly oppressed the left performances to stop and theatrical movement was ended due to many left theatrical people defection to North Korea. The political theatre in 1960s to 70s the Park regime, developed in dramatically different ways according to orthodox group and group out of power. The political theatre of institutional system handled judgment on sterile people and had indirect political theatre from that took history material and allegory technique because of censorship. In political theatre out of institution, it started outdoor theatre that has modernized traditional performance style and established deep relationship with labor spot and culture movement organizations. Madangguek(Outdoor theatre) is 'Attentive political theatre', satirizing and offending the political and social inconsistencies such as the dictatorial government's oppression and unbalanced distribution, alienation of general people, and foreign powers' pillage sharply as well as laughing at the Establishment with negative characters. The political theatre in 1980s is divided into two categories; political theatre of institutional system and Madangguek. Institutional Political theatre mainly performed in Korea Theatre Festival and the theatre group 'Yeonwoo-Moudae' led political theatre as private theatre company. Madangguek developed into an outdoor theatrical for indoor theatre capturing postcolonial historical view. Yeonwoo-Moudae theatre company produced representative political plays at 80s such as The chronicles of Han's, Birds fly away too, and so on by combining freewheeling play spirit of Madangguek and epic theatre. Political theatre was all the rage since the age of democratization started in 1987 and political materials has been freed from ban. However, political theatre was slowly declined as real socialism was crumbling and postmodernism is becoming the spirit of the times. After 90s, there are no more plays of ideology and propaganda that aim at politicization of theatre. As the age rapidly entered into the age of deideology, political theatre discourse also changed greatly. The concept 'the political' became influential as a new political possibility that stands up to neoliberalism system in the evasion of politics. Rather than reenact political issues, it experiments new political theatre that involves something political by deconstructing and reassigning audience's political sense with provocative forms, staging others and drawing discussion about it.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.124-139
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• 2015

Unlike other mountains in Korea, Seoul Namsan(南山), which is one of the landmarks that represent the country's capital city, is perceived as a city park. This article aims to study the process that Namsan became a park and the transformation of its place in Korean Emperor and Japanese colonial period. The serial changes in Namsan, in early modern era, mean that is associated with the colonial urbanization and the rule of space by Japan. The stages of Waeseongdae Park(倭城臺公園), Gyeongseong Park(京城公園) and Hanyang Park(漢陽公園) under the leadership of Japan, due to the extension of Japan's power, Namsan has became the park. Here, the park has become a strategic tool of other's occupying Hanseongbu(漢城府), a capital city. The process that Namsan became a park dose not mean making the space for recreation and rest, but is an excuse for using the land. Since then, Namsan's parks barely fulfilled its original function as park as it was transformed into a shrine, Gyeongseong Jinjya(京城神社), for Japanese warriors or was incurred upon by Joseon Singung(朝鮮神宮), which was established as a facility to govern Korea, sometimes is gradually and sometimes is mercilessly. The fact, transplantation of Japanese culture and replacement as ruler space, is another aspect of occupying and govern place. In other words, while the process that Namsan became a park is the way of establishing Japanese force, the transformation of its place show a colonial rule as an aspect of space. Meanwhile, in spite of transformation to shrine, Namsan became accepted as a park for a long time, because of the forest of Namsan. Japan managed forest as a sacred place. It is also a result of the Japanese rule of space.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.150-169
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• 2020

Surveys of Buddhist ruins at Namsan in Gyeongju began in earnest during the Japanese colonial era, undertaken by Japanese scholars. These surveys of Buddhist remains in Namsan made during the colonial period should be seen as previous research which cannot be ignored in any in-depth study of Buddhist ruins in Gyeongju. Full-scale surveys of Buddhist ruins at Namsan began in the 1920s. Previous surveys conducted around the time of the Japanese annexation of Korea in 1910 are generally viewed as only representing preliminary investigations and, thus, have not received much attention. However, these early surveys are significant in that they led to the Buddhist ruins on Namsan becoming widely known in the 1910s and served as the foundations for later studies. The removal of the Seated Medicine Buddha from Samneung Valley in Gyeongju in 1915 and its subsequent exhibition at the Joseon Local Products Expo, which marked the fifth anniversary of the Japanese administration of Korea, was especially important in garnering attention for Namsan's wealth of Buddhist artifacts, as the statue was placed in the main hall of the art museum and attracted a great deal of interest from visitors. It is typically thought that this Seated Medicine Buddha was exhibited in 1915 because it was the most beautiful and well-preserved statue from Namsan. However, the removal of this statue was closely related to the proposed move of the Seokguram statue to Seoul around the time of Korea's annexation. The plan to move Seokguram to Seoul was primarily devised by Terauchi Masatake, and the plan, based on Ilseontongjo-ron ('日鮮同祖論'), a historical theory that prehistoric Korean and Japanese people were of the same blood, and Joseon Jeongcheasoeng-ron ('朝鮮停滯性論'), a historical theory arguing that development had stagnated in Korea, was intended to be a visual demonstration of a new era for Korea. This new era was to proceed under the rule of the Japanese Empire through the dissolution of Gyeongbokgung, the symbol of the Joseon Dynasty, which would be replaced with past glories as symbolized by the statue of Buddha. However, as the plan floundered, the replacement for Seokguram in Seoul ended up being none other than the Seated Medicine Buddha of Samneung Valley. Surveys of the Seated Medicine Buddha began in 1911, administered by Sekino Tadashi, but he likely learned of the statue's location from Moroga Hideo or Kodaira Ryozo, Japanese residents of Gyeongju. It is also probable that these Japanese residents received a request from the Japanese Government General of Korea to find a Buddha statue that was worthy of being displayed at exhibitions. In this way, we can say that the transfer of the Seated Medicine Buddha to Seoul was the result of close cooperation between the Government General, Sekino Tadashi, and Japanese residents of Gyeongju. This also had the effect of removing the magical veil which had shrouded the Buddhist ruins of Namsan. In other words, while the early surveys of Buddhist ruins on Namsan are significant, it is difficult to argue that the surveys were undertaken for purely academic purposes, as they were deeply related to the imperial ambitions of Governor-General Terauchi which encompassed the plans to move Seokguram to Seoul and the successful hosting of the 1915 Expo. It should also be pointed out that the failure of the plan to move Seokguram to Seoul and the preservation of the Seated Stone Buddha of Mireuggok at Namsan was in no small part due to resistance from Korean residents in Gyeongju. Although it is not described in detail in the paper, research is needed which shows that the Korean residents of Gyeongju were not simple bystanders, but agents of history.

• Journal of the Daesoon Academy of Sciences
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• v.16
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• pp.151-166
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• 2003

Contemporary Buddhist scholarship in Korea has been strongly affected by its origins in the Victorian era, when Western religious scholars sought to rationalize and historicize the study of religion. Modern Korean scholars, trained within the Western scholarly paradigm, share this prejudice which tends toward the rational. The result is a skewed understanding of Buddhism, emphasizing its philosophical and theoretical aspects at the expense of seemingly "irrational" religious elements based on the direct experience of meditation practice. This paper seeks to look at the historical context in which modern Korean Buddhist scholarship had been shaped during the colonial period of Japan. Two case studies will be examined particularly in the light of post-colonial perspectives of Buddhist studies: the case of Jonghong Bak(1903-1976) and the case of Donghwa Gim(1902-1980), two pioneering scholars in the field of Buddhist studies. They share similarities as well as differences. Both were born and active at almost the same period, during which Korean peninsula experienced modernization forced upon by Japanese colonialism. And thus, the experience of colonialism and modernization brought them into conflict between tradition and modernity. Their responses, however, were different. Pak, originally trained in Western philosophy, especially German philosophy, wanted to study Korean Buddhism in the context of the so-called Korean Philosophy per se. He was motivated to seek for the national and cultural identity of Korea. And thus his scholarship on Korean Buddhism naturally led him to look for an original Korean Buddhism distinct from the Buddhism of India, China and Japan. On the other hand, Gim, who became a monk in his youth, later went to Japan for college where he was exposed to modern Buddhist scholarship. He was the first to introduce modern Buddhist scholarship to Korea, and since then, contemporary Korean Buddhist scholarship owes much to his contributions. Despite his contributions to contemporary Korean Buddhist scholarship, if we look at his efforts in the light of post-colonial perspective, his ideas need to be reevaluate.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.54 no.2
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• pp.120-135
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• 2021

Changdeokgung Rear Garden is an important place to show the essence of the garden culture of the Joseon Dynasty. In the garden landscape experience, the restoration of the road completes the system of connecting the main spaces. Therefore, the restoration of the road requires accurate understanding of its creation, extinction, and maintenance. The purpose of this study was to detail the changes in the path that occurred in the Changdeokgung Palace Rear Garden from the late Joseon Dynasty to the modern and contemporary period by analyzing literature and drawing materials. For a time-series analysis, "Donggwoldo" and "Donggwoldohyeong" produced in the Joseon Dynasty, along with "Changdeokgung Plan Drawing" produced in modern and contemporary times, and aerial photographs were used. Drawings and photographs of different coordinate systems were transformed into one coordinate system in the geographic information system ArcGIS to compare changes in the movements of different periods. The results of the study are as follows. First, a total of 37 sections have been used since Japanese colonial era, of which 13 have been maintained, 14 have disappeared, and 10 have been newly established. Among the extinction sections, the road north of Neungheojeong Pavilion is considered to be an urgent place to connect the space to the garden and restore it to enjoy the scenery. In the new section, it seems necessary to establish a new alternative road or shorten the section for the connecting section between Daebodan and Okryucheon. Second, it was revealed that the biggest and most frequent changes to the road system in the garden were Japanese colonial era and renovations in the 1970s. It is worth noting the changes in the road since the 1970s, rather than Japanese colonial era, where it was difficult to manage the gardens independently. The access road to Okryucheon remained in its original shape until the 1990s, but it was renovated to its current shape due to misperception of the original shape. A project is needed to find out the cause of the change in this period and restore the damaged original shape. The biggest achievement of this study is that it revealed the changes in the garden path of Changdeokgung Palace in modern and contemporary times. The biggest achievement of this study is that it revealed the changes in the road of Changdeokgung Palace Rear Gardens in modern and contemporary times. However, there is a limitation that it has not been able to clearly present the location and shape that should be restored because it has not found data on landscaping plans or maintenance. In order to restore the road using the data revealed in this study, it seems necessary to consider realistic problems such as current space utilization, viewing system, disaster prevention and maintenance.

• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.45
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• pp.7-32
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• 2016

This article considers the meaning of 'Zainichi (在日)' expressed in epic poem Niigata (1970) written by Korean-Japanese poet Kim Shi Jong. Kim sets two points in his creation of poetry. One is summer of liberation released from Japanese colonial domination in 1945. The other is Japan where he lives as a Korean-Japanese. These two points have made him think about the meaning of living in post-colonial era and the national division of Korea, his home country. His thought like this is well expressed in his epic Niigata. Niigata was written in 1959 when the ship returning to North Korea departed from Niigata of Japan. However, Kim couldn't return to his home country at that time. He stowed away from South Korea to Japan in 1949. He participated in antigovernment activities occurred in Jeju Island to block the national division between the south and the north after the liberation in 1945, the so-called 4.3 incident. Besides, he was having conflict with the organization of North Korea at that time because it required a doctrinaire belief and creation in Korean. Kim was writing poems in Japanese and pursued the life of existence as a Korean-Japanese. Therefore, he decided to remain in Japan instead of returning to North Korea. Of course, he could not return to South Korea because he was a refugee. Kim imagined in Niigata, the place located in an extension of the 38th parallel and the spot of national division. He could not cross the division line when he was in his home country, but he could do it in Niigata through imagination. The life as a Korean-Japanese makes it possible. 'Zainichi', which means living in Japan, has been recognized as a worse situation compared to living in Korea. However, Kim changed his way of thinking. Zainichi can embrace South Korea, North Korea, and Japan. This is the very reason why he lives there as a Korean-Japanese. His thought like this is well expressed by symbolic representations and metamorphose as well as the imagination of spatial extension.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.134-147
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• 2014

Pleasure grounds, which were introduced during the Japanese colonial era, were places for organizing new amusement activities, and developed into a large-scale private spaces and a new type of public space at the same time. This study explores the scenery and accommodations of pleasure grounds and the changes of the amusement culture through the Wolmido Pleasure Grounds, which was a typical pleasure grounds of the time. At that time, Wolmido became a comprehensive amusement/entertainment place with many elements of both Western and Japanese pleasure grounds such as exotic buildings harmonized with trees, a beach, a seaside school, public playing field, and zoo constructed on the Island. Wolmido Pleasure Ground, which was connected with Kyungsung by Kyungin railroad during the Japanese colonial era, is a good example showing the process of the popularization and commercialization of the amusement culture. The process of popularization of amusement shows the spreading of the enjoyment of leisure time with amusement activities through appreciating the beautiful scenery of the pleasure grounds among various social classes. The caste system was broken and anyone could use the pleasure grounds by paying the fee, of which there were many kinds, so the distinction between genders and the different classes, such as the Chosun people and Japanese, regarding amusement in pleasure grounds disappeared gradually. Also, pleasure grounds were a place for Western hobby-sports activities and were the means to generalize collective and dynamic activities through summer school and various sport games. At the same time, there were places for deviation from the existing social norms when it was combined with entertainment facilities. The commercialization of amusement took place in the form of an artificial entertainment culture within an artificial environment. First, the scenery was artificially constructed and this scenery created the image of paradise such as 'captivating summer vacation spot' and 'water kingdom'. This was the result of the combined intentions of the colonial authority, the railroad company and the amusement corporation to produce economic profits and encourage development in the area. Second, an artificial spectacle was constructed using nature as the backdrop. Buildings of various styles created a modernized and exotic image when they were combined with each other. Artifacts such as breakwaters and arcades created new attractions for people that enabled them to view both nature and the crowds from a whole different perspective. Third, pleasure grounds contributed to the advent of passive users who would just follow the given use and instructions. In this way, one can find the prototype of popular entertainment places of today such as sightseeing complexes, amusement parks, and theme parks through the construction of amusement grounds as a place for providing dynamic activities.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.22-43
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• 2023

This paper deals with the stone standing Avalokitesvara statue in Jeonghyesa Temple that was created by Mangong in 1924. The stone standing Avalokitesvara statue of Jeonghyesa Temple is the earliest extant Buddha statue produced by Mangong, and symbolism was given to Jeonghyesa in the process of its reconstruction. So far, there has been no study that has approached ideas and beliefs through Buddhist studies led by Mangong and specific relics. In order to proceed with this study, Mangong's legal words and anecdotes and newspaper articles during the Japanese colonial era were used to trace the dynamics of Jeonghyesa and Sudeoksa during Mangong's reign, and to investigate the effects obtained from the creation of the large Bodhisattva statue and the meaning of its location. In addition, an interview was attempted with the descendants of master, who were in charge of the sculpture at the time, to confirm the exact construction period and the list of craftsmen. It is judged that the stone standing Bodhisattva statue of Gwanchoksa Temple has been influenced by the double covering and square crown seen in the standing stone statue of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva of Jeonghyesa Temple, the large hands compared to the body, the proportion between the head and the body, and the sense of enormity felt in the body like a stone pillar. Therefore, we looked at how the standing stone Bodhisattva statue of Gwanchoksa Temple, which was produced in the early Goryeo Dynasty, could have influenced the creation of the Bodhisattva statue in the modern period. A multilateral analysis was attempted on how the image of the Gwanchoksa Bodhisattva statue, which was used as a symbol representing Chungcheongnam-do in the Chosun Exposition held in 1929 and the visit to Gwanchoksa Temple, which began with the laying of the railroad during the Japanese colonial period, was used from the viewpoint of the succession and transformation of the style. With this study as an opportunity, it is hoped that the understanding of the prehistoric Mangong representing the modern period and the horizon of Korean Buddhist sculpture research in the modern period will be broadened.

• The Journal of Korean-Japanese National Studies
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• no.34
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• pp.5-40
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• 2018

This paper is to take note of national, social and economic movement, social & economic publicness of religion surrounding Yeonggwang, Joennam around 1910s. At first I would like to look at this period because regional society was in the middle of change of large transition before and after Japan's forced occupation of Korea in 1910s and March 1st Independence Movement in 1919. In particular we focus on spatially Yeonggwang in Joennam because this area is not only called as advent area of Buddhism earlier but also is unique regional culture and ideological topology where Donghak, Protestantism, Catholic, Institute of Won Buddhism and etc. Through casting light upon the above, it is expected to offer one clue for the question of internalizing value to be sought for in the national and social and economic movement by Korean religion around 1910 and public goods in the strategy and tactics to be selected and further publicness and practice lying in their awareness and behavior. In particular it is thought to have advanced the accumulation of case study of Yeonggwang in Joennam with representative 'place-ness' related to this. Along with this it is considered that our challenge is to restore and casting light again on common foundation of existence shape and publicness of various religions in the middle of national and social movement and economic movement in Yeonggwang of Joennam area. In other words, we expect that religions will continue individual efforts and common practices to urge social justice for historic and public value based on common good encompassing historic value, in other words, individual responsibility and social justice among social and economic conditions originated from Japanese colonial era.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.4-39
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to examine the archetype of the Gyeongju Castle walls and the facilities around it to bring together previous studies and identify the specific scale and structure of the archetype. The findings can be summarized as follows. First, we verified the exact location and dimensions of the castle through an over-lay of land registration maps from the Japanese colonial period, land registration maps from the present day, cadastral maps, and excavation records. Second, the dimension of the rampart and fort of the castle were discovered by combining and analyzing historical evidence, modern research data, historical site studies from the Japanese colonial era, and maintenance records. Third, the historical records related to the yeojang (rampart sub-wall) formats in the Joseon Dynasty were used to examine the archetype of the yeojang. This study led to the discovery of the archetype of the Gyeongju castle yeojang in the early stage of King Munjong's reign (1451), and the archetype created after the Japanese Invasion (16th century). And finally, although most of the rampart is not present, the structure of the castle can be estimated based on historical research, and research materials modern and contemporary(excavation conservation field survey). In addition, this study presented a archetype restoration plan for each site, to be used as foundational data for future restoration projects.