Qonaqtar: Stories of Koryo-saram

This public program, held in conjunction with the exhibition Qonaqtar, explores the cultural and artistic histories of the Koryo-saram—the Korean diaspora in Central Asia. Their history in the region began with the forced deportations from the Soviet Far East in 1937. Over the decades, Koryo-saram communities have fostered a vibrant cultural life that has significantly shaped Kazakhstan’s intellectual and artistic landscape.

The program brings together art historians, artists, journalists and culture workers to reflect on this shared history and its contemporary resonances. Art historian Elizaveta Kim will trace the lineage of historical Koryo-saram artists, followed by presentations from contemporary artists Roman Zakharov and Leonid Khan, whose practices engage with themes of migration, identity, and cultural memory.

The second half of the program examines two pillars of Korean identity in Kazakhstan: the Republican State Academic Korean Theatre, presented by its chief stage director Ekaterina Pen and the newspaper Koryo Ilbo, the oldest Korean-language publication outside the Korean Peninsula, presented by journalists Diana Son and Alexandra Kim. The day concludes with a screening of Listening Guests (2025) by Korean artist YoungEun Kim, a video work exploring the sonic and emotional connections between Korea and its diaspora.

The Qonaqtar public program is a series of events held in conjunction with the museum’s inaugural exhibition, Qonaqtar: An Exhibition from the Collection of the Almaty Museum of Arts. This series was conceived to offer a deeper look into the central themes and specific artworks within the collection. Following previous sessions that focused on the traditions of hospitality and the politics of food, the program continues to explore the diverse narratives shaped by the region’s complex history.

15:00 – 16:30 | Artistic Lineages

Lecture: Korean Artists of Kazakhstan by Elizaveta Kim

Artist Talks: Contemporary perspectives from artists Roma Zakharov and Leonid Khan

Discussion

17:00 – 18:15 | Living Archives: Theater & Press

Presentation: The Identity Code: Korean Theatre from Memory to Modernity by Ekaterina Pen

Presentation: A Century of Ink: The History of Koryo Ilbo by Diana Son and Alexandra Kim

Discussion

18:30 – 19:15 | Film Screening

Listening Guests (2025) by YoungEun Kim.

Duration: 38 min. A reflection on the Koryoin experience and the sonic ties between ancestral and current homelands

Participants & Biographies

Elizaveta Kim, Art Historian

Lecture Korean Artists of Kazakhstan

How did Koreans arrive in Kazakhstan? In 1937, by decree of the Soviet government, over 100,000 Koreans were deported to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, becoming the first ethnic group in the USSR to face such mass political repression. This lecture examines the works of those who arrived to Kazakhstan with professional training such as Kim Hen Nyun and Kim In Ho. It continues with looking at the second generation of artists who arrived as children - Mikhail Kim and Boris Pak whose works are also at the collection of Almaty Museum of Arts, and the third generation born and educated in Kazakhstan represented by artists such as Viktor Moon, Sergey Kim, Nikolai Lim. Kim also highlights the emergence of women artists like Elena Tyu and Lyubov Ri, leading up to the contemporary galaxy of artists working in conceptual and digital media today. Throughout the lecture, a central question is posed: What distinguishes Korean artists from other artists in Kazakhstan? And do such differences truly exist?

Ekaterina Pen, Chief Stage Director, Republican State Academic Korean Theatre

Lecture: Identity Code: Korean Theatre from Memory to Modernity

A graduate of the St. Petersburg State Institute of Culture, Ekaterina Pen was named one of Kazakhstan's best young directors in 2025. Her lecture traces the evolution of the Korean Theatre—from its role as a vessel for cultural memory to its current search for a modern visual language and its role in re-evaluating national identity in a globalized world.

Diana Son & Alexandra Kim, Journalists of the Koryo Ilbo

Lecture: Koryo Ilbo: The Voice of the Diaspora

In the lecture, journalists will introduce guests to a completely different side of Korean culture—one that does not glitter or flash like K-pop idols. This culture was born at the dawn of the Japanese colonial era, far from the Korean Peninsula. One of its most significant historical legacies is the Korean newspaper Koryo Ilbo.

Founded in 1923 in the Russian Far East, on the fourth anniversary of the March 1st Movement, it served as one of the primary ideological voices of the anti-Japanese resistance. This year, the newspaper celebrates its 103rd anniversary, having been published in Kazakhstan for the vast majority of its existence. It remains the only Korean print publication founded during the colonial era to have survived outside of the Korean Peninsula. Today, the newspaper is more than just a media outlet; it is a vital source of culture and tradition for post-Soviet Koreans. Koryo Ilbo is a space where the older generation finds a connection to the past, and where young Koreans can draw closer to their roots and identity.

YoungEun Kim, Artist/Filmmaker

Film Screening: Listening Guests (2025)

Listening Guests (2025) is a lyrical exploration of the Koryoin community— those Koryo-saram who have returned to Korea—centered on the belief that diaspora creates a distinct and profound mode of listening. Through language, music, and the aural rhythms of daily life, the film examines how diasporic identities are shaped within the shifting dynamics between the ancestral homeland and the host country. By focusing on a community separated from its origins by both time and geography, the work reveals listening as a vital tool for navigating memory and cultural belonging.

YoungEun Kim is a contemporary artist and filmmaker whose work investigates sound and listening as sociopolitical and historical practices. She explores how auditory experiences are constructed within specific contexts and their potential for decolonization and knowledge production. A recipient of the 2026 ACC Future Prize and the Korea Artist Prize, her work has been exhibited at the Gwangju Biennale, M+ Museum (Hong Kong), and the Samsung Museum of Art (Seoul). She was a resident at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Film and Digital Media at the University of California, Santa Cruz.