Sooah Kwak


Sooah Kwak is a researcher in anthropology and museum professional. Her current research is on leprosy settlement villages in South Korea.

Sooah is a contract Research Scholar at the American Museum of Natural History. Previously, she worked on project Eternal Testimony, an AI archive of Korean “comfort women” oral histories. Sooah holds an MA in Museum Anthropology from Columbia University and a BA in Science, Technology, and Society (STS) and BAS in Art and Technology from Sogang University.

Sooah is also an multimedia artist-activist. Creative projects have been exhibited internationally.

Contact

sooah.k [at] columbia [dot] edu

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Sooah Kwak

is a researcher in anthropology and museum professional. Her current research is on leprosy settlement villages in South Korea.

Contact

sooah.k [at] columbia [dot] edu

Recylced Places


Recycled Places delves into the making of the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS), a small community museum that chronicles the rich history of community resilience of the Lower East Side Manhattan. Following the economic stagnation in the 1970s, many buildings that were seized by the city for nonpayment of taxes were left vacant. Squatters reclaimed these tenements, and after multiple attempts of forced eviction and resistance, the city offered to legalize the occupation. Squatters of C-Squat collectively decided to rent out the first-floor storefront, which now houses MoRUS. While transforming the squat into a museum, certain parts such as walls with murals were preserved, while other elements were thoughtfully recycled and repurposed. Through a broad contour of the making of MoRUS from C-Squat, this study aims to suggest a more holistic approach to sustainable urban heritage conservation.

International Council of Museums
ICAMT 50th Annual Conference

10/6/2024 - 10/10/2024
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