Dr Seunghye Sun

Dr Seunghye Sun is a Korean art historian, curator, and cultural diplomacy specialist whose work brings together art history, museum practice, and international cultural exchange. She studied aesthetics at Seoul National University, received her PhD in art history from the University of Tokyo, and was a Visiting Fellow at the Harvard-Yenching Institute. Her research has focused on Korean and East Asian art, aesthetics, visual culture, and the role of culture in shaping public imagination across borders.

Dr Sun has held senior positions across museums, academia, and public service. She previously worked at the National Museum of Korea and the Cleveland Museum of Art, where she contributed to the development of Korean art collections and exhibitions. She later served as Director of the Daejeon Museum of Art and as Head of Curatorial Affairs at the Seoul Museum of Art, leading exhibitions on contemporary art, cultural heritage, and the intersection of art and technology.

In the field of cultural diplomacy, she served as Director of the Cultural Exchange and Cooperation Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea. Most recently, she served as Minister-Counsellor at the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in the United Kingdom and Director of the Korean Cultural Centre UK. Her work has explored how Korean culture, heritage, and digital innovation can contribute to global dialogue.

At Clare Hall, Dr Sun aims to deepen her research on art, aesthetics, and cultural diplomacy, while developing new perspectives on Korean art and soft power in a global context.