Bang (방) Social Gatherings as Collaborative Inquiry Space: Rethinking Research through Informal Social Gatherings in Art Education

This article explores the concept of ‘ bang (방)’, a Korean term denoting a social gathering space, as an innovative framework for a research and professional development space in art education. Since May 2022, six authors, all Korean immigrant art education researchers, have engaged in weekly virtual ‘ Zoombang ’ sessions to share personal experiences, pedagogical issues and socio‐political topics in an unstructured format. Through these informal gatherings, we cultivated a vibrant community that values empathy and collaboration, ultimately reshaping our identities as researchers and educators. Our findings highlight the significance of social gatherings as a powerful means of knowledge sharing and community building, emphasising the collective growth and empowerment that emerges from such spaces. This paper argues that informal social gatherings like bang (방) can serve as vital sites for critical discourse and professional development in art education research and practices.