Archives of American Art

Oral history interview with Johsel Namkung

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.namkun89
Creators:
Namkung, Johsel, 1919-2013
Takami, David
Lau, Alan Chong
Dates:
1989 Oct. 5-1991 Feb. 25
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
74 Pages
Transcript
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
An interview of Johsel Namkung conducted 1989 Oct. 5-1991 Feb. 25, by Alan Chong Lau (1989) and David Takami (1991), in Seattle, Wash., for the Archives of American Art Northwest Asian American Project. Namkung discusses his family background and the effect of living under Japanese occupation in Korea; U.S. immigration in the late 1940's; studies in music; his determination to become a photographer, early color photography, his philosophy as a photographer; and the Asian American community in Seattle. Namkung recalls Paul Horiuchi, Mark Tobey, George Tsutakawa and Chao-Chen Yang.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Johsel Namkung (1919- ) is a Korean American photographer based in Seattle, Washington.

Administration

Sponsor
Funding for this interview was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation. Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.
Existence and Location of Copies
Transcript available on line
Existence and Location of Originals
Transcript also available at the University of Washington, Manuscripts Collection, and at the Oregon Historical Society.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics, and administrators.

Digital Content


Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.

More Information

General

General
Originally recorded on 5 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 8 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hrs., 37 min.


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Asian American art Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Asian American artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Interviews Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sound recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Korean American art Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Korean American Artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Asian American photographers Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographers -- Washington (State) -- Seattle Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Horiuchi, Paul, 1906- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tobey, Mark Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tsutakawa, George Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Yang, Chao-Chen, 1910-1969 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Northwest Asian American Project Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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