EUGENE–Cultural anthropologist Song Nai Rhee will give a free gallery talk entitled "The Choson Kingdom: Historical Background, Ideology and Society" at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 2, for the MusEvenings! program at the University of Oregon Museum of Art, 1430 Johnson Lane.

Rhee’s lecture is in conjunction with the museum’s current exhibition, "The Realm of Revelation: Vision and Imagination in Later Korean Art," which is on display through April 9.

Currently a courtesy professor of cultural anthropology at the University of Oregon, Rhee served from 1984—1998 as vice president for academic affairs and dean of Northwest Christian College (NCC) in Eugene where he had been professor of Biblical studies, history and anthropology from 1963—1984.

During 1998—99, Rhee was a senior research scholar at the Seoul National University Museum in Korea. Over the years, he conducted field research activities in Israel, Japan, Korea, China, Mongolia and the former Soviet Union.

Originally from Korea, Rhee came to the United States to attend NCC where he received his first bachelor’s degree in 1958. He subsequently earned master’s degrees in Semitic languages and literature from Indiana’s Butler University and in history, Asian studies and anthropology from the University of Oregon. He also received doctoral degrees in Judaic studies from Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate Learning (now a part of the University of Pennsylvania) and in anthropology with a Korean emphasis from the University of Oregon.

"The Realm of Revelation," organized by Charles Lachman, an associate professor of art history and the museum’s associate curator of Asian art, is drawn in part from works in the art museum’s collections. The rest have been loaned by Robert and Sandra Mattielli of Portland.

The exhibition consists of traditional folding screens, hanging scrolls and fans, as well as an unusual banner and several intricately folded prints. It explores the idea that many Korean artists of the 19th and 20th centuries functioned essentially as visionaries, using their art to reveal otherwise invisible aspects of the world.

The University of Oregon Museum of Art is a nonprofit state institution supported by the generosity of its membership and by grants from the Oregon Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. Operating funds also are provided by the Horton, Museum of Art, Culp, Krause and Autzen endowments. Additional funding for this exhibition was provided by a Lane County Tourism Special Projects Grant.

Accessible to people with disabilities, the Museum of Art is open from noon to 8 p.m. Wednesday and from noon to 5 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. Suggested admission is $3, except on Wednesday evenings when the MusEvenings! program offers free extended viewing hours from 5 to 8 p.m. Museum members, students, UO employees and children are admitted free.

For information, browse http://uoma.uoregon.edu or call (541) 346-3027.

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