Yoonha Kim
Yoonha Kim is an anthropologist who is interested in exploring how local technics and heritage can be transformed to create alternative ways of world-making. She is currently a pre-doctoral researcher at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, as a member of Object Space Agency and the Centre for Anthropological Research on Museums and Heritage (CARMAH).
Kim's research focuses on the relationship between East Asian material culture and contemporary technological imagination, with a specific focus on Korean sartorial heritage. Her project draws on the Korean concept of sallim (enlivening), which views matter as active and emphasises the responsibility of humans as in between beings in the more-than-human world. Her background as a designer and her graduate studies in visual and media anthropology led her to deploy a range of multimodal forms of anthropology, including filmmaking and immersive fabulation workshops, to explore these issues.
She has co-curated the Stretching Materialities exhibition in Berlin (2021-2022) and co-organised the Stretching Senses School, both of which explore alternative modes of thinking about materials and ecological sensibility.
Her interests include interdisciplinary research, sensory anthropology, environmental imaginaries, cultural heritage, science and technology, design anthropology, cosmotechnics, everyday life, ai and creativity, experimental ethnography, intercultural dialogue, alternative ontologies.
Cluster of Excellence
»Matters of Activity«
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
Sophienstr. 22a
10178 Berlin
Edited Volumes & Exhibition Catalogues
Bauer, F., Kim, Y., Marienberg, S., Schäffner, W. eds. 2024. Towards a New Culture of the Material. Berlin: De Gruyter. Forthcoming.
Stein, C., Blümle, C., Kim, Y., Le Calvé, M., Miodragović, N., Samuel, N., Winkler, C. eds. 2024. Stretching Materialities. Forthcoming. Hamburg: adocs.
Le Calvé, M., Kim, Y. eds. 2021. Stretching Senses School. Documentation. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.
https://stretchingmaterialities.pubpub.org/stretchingsensesschool
Research Objects
Le Calvé, M. (curator), Kim, Y. (curator), Espinoza, N. (mentor), Van Olst, M. (mentor), VanTa (mentor), Vega, N. (mentor), Woolmore, J. (mentor), Delle, A. (project assistance) 2021. »Stretching Senses School - Follow up #1.«
https://www.matters-of-activity.de/en/activities/6301/stretching-senses-school
Le Calvé, M. (curator), Kim, Y. (curator), Espinoza, N. (mentor), Van Olst, M. (mentor), VanTa (mentor), Vega, N. (mentor), Woolmore, J. (mentor), Delle, A. (project assistance) 2021. »Stretching Senses School - Follow up #2.«
https://www.matters-of-activity.de/en/activities/6301/stretching-senses-school
Exhibitions
Winkler, C., Blümle, C. (project leaders, curatorial leaders), Kim, Y., Le Calvé, M., Miodragović, N., Samuel, N., Stein, C. (concept, curators), Trabandt, M.-L., Ladik, L. (project assistants). Stretching Materialities – Hidden Activities in Objects and Spaces. Exhibition. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Tieranatomisches Theater, Berlin. 16 September 2021 - 4 March 2022.
https://www.matters-of-activity.de/en/activities/6006/exhibition-stretching-materialities
Clarke, J., Laine, A., Le Calvé, M., Kim, Y., Höfs, C., Diab, F., Moderbacher, C., Blauensteiner, I., Vionnet, C., Becholey Besson, C., Pontes, P., de Seta, G., Miogragović, N., Hennessy, K., Lynn Smith, T., Lee Tzu-Tung, Bordonaro, L., Cevallos, P., Kanto Field/Works. Kaleidoscopic Activities Between Anthropology and Art. Exhibition. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Online (Lisbon). 20 July 2020 - 20 October 2020.
https://antart.easaonline.org/home/
Contributions to Exhibitions
Le Calvé, M., Kim, Y. (curators), Bjerre Jensen, D. (presenter) »Stretching Senses School – scoring perspectives for speculative ethnography, workshop and performance with Dorte Bjerre Jensen.« 24 November 2022 - 25 November 2022.
https://stretchingmaterialities.pubpub.org/pub/scoringperspectives/release/2
Gholami, M. F., Kim, Y., Le Calvé, M. with Espinoza, N. (sound artist) »Haptic Hanbok in the Virtual reality setup and the concept of Virtual Sensing knife in virtual Cutting floor.« At the exhibition: Stretching Materialities – Hidden Activities in Objects and Spaces. Tieranatomisches Theater, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. 17 September 2021 - 4 March 2022.
https://www.matters-of-activity.de/en/activities/6006/exhibition-stretching-materialities
Le Calvé, M., Kim, Y. (curators), Espinoza, N., Van Olst, M., VanTa, Vega, N., Woolmore, J. (mentors), Delle, A. (project assistant) »Stretching Senses School - Final Presentation.« At the exhibition: Stretching Materialities – Hidden Activities in Objects and Spaces. Tieranatomisches Theater, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. 16 December 2021.
https://www.matters-of-activity.de/en/activities/6301/stretching-senses-school
Le Calvé, M., Kim, Y. (curators, project leaders), Delle, A. (project assistant) »Stretching Senses School.« At the exhibition: Stretching Materialities – Hidden Activities in Objects and Spaces. Tieranatomisches Theater, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. 14 October 2021 - 16 December 2021.
https://www.matters-of-activity.de/en/activities/5902/exhibition-stretching-materialities
Public Engagement
Perraudin, L. (project leader), Müller, M. (project leader), Werner, K. (coordinator, moderator), Dorniak, M. (contributor), Kim, Y. (contributor), Tikka, E. (workshop design), Nestler, A (science communication), Bullermann E. (project assistant), Steinhardt, S. (science communication). 2023. Speculative Co-Design Workshop "Breathing In, Breathing Out: Practices of Air". Berlin University Alliance, Clusters of Excellence »Matters of Activity« and »Science of Intelligence«, Lobe Block Berlin. Germany. 20 May 2023.
https://www.collactive-materials.de/workshops/
Talks & Presentations
Kim, Y. (lecturer), Marienberg, S., Schäffner, W. (organizers) Wearing Matter? Talk at the Intercultural Views on Matter, Gemeinsamer Workshop des Exzellenzclusters mit der Akademie für Europäische Kulturen der Tongji Universität Shanghai. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. 28 June 2023.
Kim, Y. Can Qi flow through Pixels? Panel Presentation at the Responsible Fashion Series, How can digital fashion empower and preserve cultural heritage?. University of Antwerp. Virtual. 10 March 2023.
Le Calvé, M., Kim, Y. The Patchy Paths of the Stretching Senses School. Panel Presentation at the Royal Anthropological Institute Film Festival 2023, Rebuilding the Real: Immersive encounters with ontological alterity through community-led VR projects. Virtual. 8 March 2023.
Kim, Y. Wearing Symbiosis and Flow: reimagining traditional Korean values as transformative method. Panel Presentation at the European Association of Social Anthropologists conference 2022: Transformation, Hope and the Commons, Relational creativities as transformative method: thinking from East Asia II. Queen’s University Belfast. Hybrid. 29 July 2022.
Kim, Y. Wearing Worlds: tacit modes of approaching plural ontologies. Talk at the The comparative anthropology of worlding, A masterclass beyond disciplinary boundaries with Philippe Descola, Forum Scintiarum, Tübingen. 30 May 2022.
Weber, R., Werner, B. M., Eger Domingos, D., Yang, B., Kim, Y., Almpani-Lekka, D., Bauer, F., Hehemeyer-Cürten, J., Rosenthal, N., Siquera Rodrigues, L., Shams, B., Schneider, M., Rasehorn, F. Indoor Water Bio-Remediation System. Poster presentation at the Scaling Matters: From the Lab to the Field, MoA Retreat at the Landgut Stober. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. 13 September 2022.
https://www.matters-of-activity.de/en/activities/9125/scaling-matters-from-the-lab-to-the-field
Weber, R., Werner, B. M., Eger Domingos, D., Yang, B., Kim, Y., Almpani-Lekka, D., Bauer, F., Hehemeyer-Cürten, J., Rosenthal, N., Siquera Rodrigues, L., Shams, B., Schneider, M., Rasehorn, F. »Minus Zero. Interspecies Design in Underwater Environments«. Talk at the Scaling Matters: From the Lab to the Field, Landgut Stober. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. 13 September 2022.
https://www.matters-of-activity.de/en/activities/9125/scaling-matters-from-the-lab-to-the-field
Bauer, F., Kim, Y., Letellier, J. Three Attempts at Human and Non-Human Agencies. Talk at the Brown Bag Brunch. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Virtual. 15 June 2021.
Bauer, F., Kim, Y. Points in Making. Talk at the 2nd Annual Conference »Tipping Points: Plastic, Contingent and Unstable Matters«, Contingent Matters. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Hybrid. 17 November 2021.
Kim, Y. (presenter), Vostalova, Z. (presenter), Le Calvé, M. (moderator and curator), Clarke, J. (moderator and curator) ANTART Field/Works Talk #9: In Between Hanbok. Talk at the Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Faculdade de Belas-Artes da Universidade de Lisboa, EASA. Virtual. 15 April 2021.
https://antart.easaonline.org/talk-in-between-hanbok/, https://soundcloud.com/ant-art-827178138/antart-fieldworks-talk-9-yoonha-kim-and-zil-vostalova
Kim, Y. »Design anthropological exploration of the possible futures of digital self-expression«. Panel Presentation at the European Association of Social Anthropologists Conference, Futures Anthropology as Interventional Theory and Practice. Virtual. 24 July 2020.
Events & Workshops
Kim, Y., Gebrayel, I. On Design(ers), Anthropology, and Multimodal Ambivalences. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. 30 November 2022.
Bauer, F., Guiducci, L., Hathroubi, S., Kim, Y., Marienberg, S., Miodragović, N., Nestler, A., Rešetar, I., Winkler, C. 2nd Annual Conference »Tipping Points. Plastic, Contingent and Unstable Matters«. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Hybrid. 16 November 2021 - 17 November 2021.
www.matters-of-activity.de/de/activities/6581/tipping-points-plastic-contingent-and-unstable-matters
Bauer, F., Kim, Y., Wegener, F. Share Your Toolbox. at the Brown Bag Brunch, Cluster »Matters of Activity«. Virtual. 16 March 2021.
Kim, Y. (contributor), Le Calvé, M. (curator and organizer), Traberth, A. (contributor) Ferment-activity Club #2: Kimchi Party. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Virtual. 26 May 2021.
https://blog.matters-of-activity.de/2021/05/25/ferment-activity-club-2-kimchi-party-wed-26th-3pm/
Kim, Y., Perraudin, L. Where Does our Knowledge Come From? Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity. Image Space Material«. Virtual. 4 May 2021.
Stock, R., Dierichs, K., Bonavia, E., Zachow, S., Rodriguez, L., Le Calvé, M., Gholami, M. F., Kim, Y. Workshop »Sounding Invisible Boundaries. Experiments in Haptic Thinking«. Cluster of Excellence »Matters of Activity«, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Hybrid. 2 June 2021.
Press Articles
Kim, Yoonha. 2022. »Wearing Worlds 살림의 옷.« Arts of the Working Class, 1 March 2022.
https://artsoftheworkingclass.org/text/wearing-worlds