Bridging Media Art and East Asian Philosophy in the AI Era
Key information
- Date
- Time
-
6:00 pm to 7:30 pm
- Venue
- SOAS Gallery
- Room
- BGLT
- Event type
- Lecture & Event highlights
About this event
This lecture by leading scholar and media artist Dr Jinjoon Lee explores ontology in the post-digital age, where myth and history, memory and data, identity and anonymity converge.
As a 'data gardenist', Lee investigates the liminoid experience of utopian space ideologies through new technologies, specialising in creating multisensory in-between spaces where perception intersects with data-driven systems, using elements such as light, sound, scent, and data. Focusing on the theme of creativity in the AI era, Lee presents a range of his recent works to examine how artistic practice can navigate and respond to these complex conditions.
At the same time, he raises critical questions about the dangers of over-reliance on technology, arguing that an uncritical embrace of AI risks weakening independent and reflective thinking. This view is grounded in the speculative idea that the post-digital era is characterised by rapid acceleration and overwhelming excess, with the speed of AI development and the proliferation of images generating an epistemological crisis that challenges human perception and comprehension.
Within this framework, Lee situates his practice in East Asian philosophical traditions and the lineage of the literati artist-scholar, highlighting the interconnectedness of nature, technology, and human perception, while suggesting alternative pathways for reinterpreting creativity in the AI era.
Registration
This event is free to attend but booking is essential.
Sponsor and organiser
This lecture is part of the Korea Foundation's LAB Series, and has been co-organised by the Korea Foundation and SOAS University of London.
About the speaker
Dr Jinjoon Lee
Dr Jinjoon Lee FRSA is a leading scholar and media artist exploring the convergence of art, technology, humanity, and multisensory environments. He holds degrees from Seoul National University, the Royal College of Art, and the University of Oxford, and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA). He is currently a Professor at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), where he serves as the founding Director of the Art & Technology Centre (KATEC). Lee also holds positions as the Art Director of Korea Media Symphony, Visiting Fellow at Exeter College and St John’s College, University of Oxford, Visiting Senior Researcher at Tokyo University of the Arts, and Affiliate Professor at New York University (NYU).
As a Bloomberg New Contemporaries 2021 artist in the UK and represented by BB&M Gallery in Seoul, Jinjoon Lee has exhibited his work at institutions including MMCA Korea, ZKM Germany, the Korean Cultural Centre London, and BB&M Gallery. He gained recognition in the early 2000s for THEY, a permanent public media sculpture installed at the Digital Media City (DMC), and received international attention for Good Morning, Mr G-Dragon, an unprecedented project that transmitted G-Dragon’s music and biometric iris data into outer space via satellite.
Event poster
