The Illusion of Pastness: Hanbok on Screen

Korean visual entertainment—including films, K-dramas, and K-pop music videos—is the result of highly sophisticated planning and production. These productions captivate a global audience by synthesizing music, narrative, and styling to deliver striking visual aesthetics and compelling emotional narratives. Costume is central to this production system, and it plays an instrumental role in the aesthetic appeal and popularity of the media. For luxury brands, K-drama serves as a powerful niche marketing platform, while traditional dress (hanbok) is pivotal to nation branding.

Dress historian Dr. Minjee Kim will offer fresh insights into Korean period costume as a visual and narrative language closely aligned with the development of plot and storyline. She will demonstrate how period costumes produce the “illusion of pastness” rather than the past itself, operating within a narrower range of sartorial possibilities, thereby negotiating historical accuracy, constructing stylized appearances, and translating dynamically into contemporary aesthetics.