Graduate students from the university's Department of Performing Arts and Culture won three awards—including the Excellent Paper Award and two Encouragement Awards—at the '2026 Joint Spring Conference of the Korean Association for Local Culture and the Korean Culture and Economics Association' held from June 19 to 20 at Yanglim History and Culture Village in Gwangju.

The conference was organized under the theme of 'Cultural Cities in the Era of Great Integration: New Directions for Local Culture and Cultural Economy' to discuss developmental directions for local culture and cultural economy and to share research achievements.

From the university, Ph.D. student Su Danli (Advisor: Professor Kim Young-joo) presented a paper titled "A Study on Narcissistic Mirror Image and Identity Perception in Chinese Artists' Self-Portrait Creation Activities," honoring the university with the Excellent Paper Award.

Additionally, Ph.D. student Guo Feng (Advisor: Professor Kim Young-joo) won an Encouragement Award for presenting "A Study on Calligraphers' Personal Brand Perception on Online Platforms: Focusing on the Case of Chinese Calligrapher Choi Han-baek."

Ph.D. student Dang Yingzhuan (Advisor: Professor Kim Eun-hye) also received an Encouragement Award for presenting "A Case Study on the Regional Spillover Effects of a Single Drama IP: Focusing on ."

In particular, Su Danli’s research received high praise for interpreting self-portraits as visual narratives that explore artists' identity and self-perception, and for proposing a new analytical framework combining Jacques Lacan’s mirror stage theory and James Marcia’s identity theory.

Su Danli stated, "As an international student, just participating in a conference held in Gwangju, the hometown of Korean art, and engaging in academic discussions was a meaningful experience in itself. As both a painter and a researcher, I will continue to pursue research that balances theory and practice."

Professor Kim Young-joo, who advised the students, remarked, "I hope this convergence research combining art and psychology serves as a foundation for subsequent studies in related fields. I will continue to provide support so that our students can grow into cultural talents equipped with both theory and practice."