Curator, Folklorist
Sojin Kim

Photo courtesy of Sojin Kim ​​​​​​​Sojin Kim is a curator at the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, a research and education department that collaborates with communities in the U.S. and around the world on cultural heritage policy and cultural sustainability issues. She works on projects focusing on migration, music, and public history—with particular attention to the production of collective memory through performance, archives/collections, and the use of public space. She was co-curator of the following Smithsonian Folklife Festival programs: D.C.: The Social Power of Music (2019), On the Move: Migration Across Generations (2017), Sounds of California (2016), and China: Tradition and the Art of Living (2014). Sojin holds a Ph.D. in folklore and mythology from UCLA. She previously worked as a curator at the Japanese American National Museum and the Natural History Museum of LA County; and as a coordinator for the LA Central Library’s "Shades of LA" project. She serves on the board of Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in Historic Preservation (APIAHiP).