Rockbund Art Museum (RAM) is proud to present the specialist guided tour series for "The Great Camouflage". The first session will kick off on Monday, December 1, 2025, from 19:00 to 20:30 across the 1st to 5th floors of the museum. Supported by the Octone Foundation and co-organized with the China-Africa Shanghai International Network (CASIN), this series features English presentations with simultaneous Chinese interpretation, offering audiences an immersive experience that combines academic depth with intellectual vitality.
As the opening of the series, the event invites two distinguished scholars: Dr. Seoyoung Choi, Visiting Researcher at the Institute of Social Sciences, Yonsei University, and Dr. Olivia Umurerwa Rutazibwa, Korea Foundation Visiting Professor in the Department of Political Science, Yonsei University. Dr. Seoyoung Choi specializes in decolonial feminist international relations theory, focusing on migration, transnational adoption, and colonial amnesia. She excels in reconstructing understandings of global politics through storytelling and translation. Dr. Olivia Umurerwa Rutazibwa (Belgian/Rwandan) has developed the methodology of "narrative epistemic Blackness", dedicated to breaking free from Eurocentric constraints in decolonial studies and exploring possibilities for cross-regional theoretical reconstruction.
The two scholars will conduct in-depth interpretations around the core themes of the exhibition: re-examining the imperial historical contexts of East Asia and Africa, analyzing the formation of "Blackness" as a global racial category, and exploring the historical legacies and far-reaching impacts of Black feminist revolutionary thought in China and East Asia. Blending academic lectures with walking tours, the event will not only sort out the intellectual context of the exhibition but also initiate diverse dialogues on Blackness, feminism, revolutionary history, and cross-cultural exchanges between China and Africa.
As the co-organizer, the China-Africa Shanghai International Network (CASIN) provides strong academic support for the event. As a local chapter of CA/AC—the world's largest independent interdisciplinary research network dedicated to China-Africa engagement—CASIN aims to promote academic exchange and cognitive enhancement among China-Africa related groups in the Yangtze River Delta region. The Octone Foundation, meanwhile, uses art and culture as a bridge to continuously support public welfare initiatives and emerging cultural projects, providing crucial backing for this academic tour series.
Seats are limited. Interested audiences are required to scan the QR code at the end of the original article to purchase tickets. We sincerely invite people from all walks of life to visit Rockbund Art Museum (20 Huqiu Rd, Huangpu District, Shanghai) and gain a new perspective on the cross-cultural intellectual landscape behind the exhibition through the integration of art and academia.
