September 11, 2025
CLARK ART INSTITUTE PRESENTS LECTURE BY DAVID YOUNG KIM EXPLORING THE LIVES FOUND IN TRANSLATION
Williamstown, Massachusetts—On Tuesday, October 7, at 5:30 pm, the Clark Art Institute’s Research and Academic Program hosts a talk by David Young Kim (University of Pennsylvania / Clark Professor, 2025–26), in which he poses the question: Is there such a thing as an “art historical self?" And if so, where might we locate that self amid its scholarship and the labor of translation? The free event takes place in the Manton Research Center auditorium.
As a preliminary response to these questions, this talk offers an account of Giorgio Vasari’s Lives (1550/1568), arguably art history’s foundational text, and its first complete translation in an East Asian language. Published in Seoul in 1986, Pachaliŭi itallia lŭnesangsŭ misulkachŏn (Vasari’s Lives of Italian Renaissance Artists) took the translator Lee Keun Bai some twenty years to complete. He carried out this nightly work under two conditions: first, the restored legality of the Korean language after Japanese colonial domination, and second, the impossibility of returning to his home region and forced separation from his family after the Korean War. His vocation prompts consideration of the reception of canonical “Western” art history in “non-Western” areas, on the one hand; more broadly, Lee’s self-decentered work inspires thoughts on the role of language in life-writing and the meaning of existence in the face of war and uncertain death.
Free. Accessible seats available; for information, call 413 458 0524. A 5 pm reception in the Manton Research Center reading room precedes the event. For more information, visit clarkart.edu/events.
ABOUT THE CLARK
The Clark Art Institute, located in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts, is one of a small number of institutions globally that is both an art museum and a center for research, critical discussion, and higher education in the visual arts. Opened in 1955, the Clark houses exceptional European and American paintings and sculpture, extensive collections of master prints and drawings, English silver, and early photography. Acting as convener through its Research and Academic Program, the Clark gathers an international community of scholars to participate in a lively program of conferences, colloquia, and workshops on topics of vital importance to the visual arts. The Clark library, consisting of nearly 300,000 volumes, is one of the nation’s premier art history libraries. The Clark also houses and co-sponsors the Williams College Graduate Program in the History of Art.
The Clark, which has a three-star rating in the Michelin Green Guide, is located at 225 South Street in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Its 140-acre campus includes miles of hiking and walking trails through woodlands and meadows, providing an exceptional experience of art in nature. Galleries are open 10 am to 5 pm Tuesday through Sunday from September through June, and daily in July and August. Admission is free to all from January through March. From April through December, admission is $22 for adults, $20 for seniors (65+), $10 for young adults (18–25) and college students, and free for all visitors under 18. Admission is free year-round for Clark members. Free admission is also available through several programs, including First Sundays Free; a local library pass program; and EBT Card to Culture. For information on these programs and more, visit clarkart.edu or call 413 458 2303.
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