The Edinburgh Film Festival will be showing four Korean films this year. The choice of three of the four comes as no surprise. No western film festival with Korean content is complete without a recent Kim Ki-duk film, and this time round it’s Breath (숨). Everyone wants to know how Park Chan-wook can follow his … [Read More]
Month: July 2007
Independent Korean performances at Edinburgh Fringe
My recent post on Korean events at the Edinburgh Fringe seriously undersold the Korean involvement there. I was simply reproducing the publicity of one particular organisation – Korea@fringe. But that organisation is only responsible for the six acts I mentioned in my previous post. Thanks to Colin Bartlett for pointing this out. So here is, … [Read More]
A North Korean coup, years in the planning
Prologue The North Korean flag stirred gently in the breeze in Pall Mall, the heart of London’s clubland, a few hundred yards from Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square. An elderly gentleman pottered up the steps to the Athenaeum. The blue and red flag caught his eye, but its significance did not register. A young woman … [Read More]
Pastor Bae Hyun-kyu
Just received from a reader On behaf of Avaaz.org, I am asking the Korean Community to remeber the death of Pastor Bae Hyun-Kyu who was killed on his 42nd birthday on Wednesday 25th July by the Taliban militia in Central Afghanistan. Also, let us remember the 22 remaining hostage in Ghazni, who were due to … [Read More]
Britain in 2007: North Korean policies, South Korean branding
July has seen two dramatic changes in Britain. A new regime in Westminster and the implementation of a draconian measure in the name of public health. On the latter point, England is catching up with Scotland, who implemented a smoking ban last year. And also with North Korea: The North Korean capital, Pyongyang, has reportedly … [Read More]
A meeting with MOT
The summer of 2004, MOT’s debut album, “non-linear”, was my soundtrack of choice. Three years later, MOT have finally released their second album, “Strange season”, and it’s hard to think of a better suited companion for this rainy summer. Amidst the band’s activities following this recent release, the two members took the time to answer … [Read More]
Last chance to see Oh Tae Seok’s masterpiece
The enigmatically titled Bicycle finishes this weekend. The play is performed by a western cast, in the English translation by Kim Ah-jeong and RB Graves, in Camden People’s Theatre, an intimate space (audience capacity around 40 I would reckon) near Euston Station. Oh Tae-Seok is known for making the audience work, skipping parts of the … [Read More]
Review: Korean traditional dance at Asia House
Peter Corbishley reports on last week’s dance event at Asia House Thanks to some unusual traffic your reviewer arrived late enough to get a front row seat for this unique performance of seven of eleven traditional Korean dances. ‘Exciting’, ‘beautiful’, ‘unexplored but most interesting’ were some of the words and phrases used to introduce this … [Read More]
Kore@Fringe performers at Edinburgh Fringe 2007
Korean artists feature in no fewer than six productions at the Edinburgh Fringe this year. Something for everyone. Full details below: Dulsori Binari — The Spirit of the Beat @ The Old College Quad 3 – 27 August Don’t miss this passionate and colourful performance showcasing the unique heritage and spirited origins of traditional Korean … [Read More]
A guide to Los Angeles Koreatown
For a good description of Los Angeles Koreatown, pay LAist a visit. Some good pictures, and also a 5 minute video right at the bottom of the post. See if you can work out how to cook a kimchi chigae from the edited version in the video. One day I’ll persuade someone to do a … [Read More]
Fakes and curruption in art and academia
There has been a number of stories of fakes recently. Here’s a brief round-up of links 1 Shin Jeong-ah. Dongguk University Fires Bogus Professor, Korea Times, 20 July Stroke of luck, raw talent fueled Shin’s ascent, JoongAng Daily, 14 July. Some selected extracts: Shin Jeong-ah was 23 when the 1995 collapse of the Sampoong Department … [Read More]
Exhibition visit: Artists, Art and Culture of D. P. R. Korea
By Susan Pares For what is said to be the first time, the arts of North Korea hit the London gallery scene. North Korean contemporary art can be viewed periodically at the Korea Gallery of the British Museum, but this exhibition offers the chance for larger exposure to media and themes that are typical of … [Read More]
Welcome to a new guest contributor
I’d like to thank Susan Pares for stepping into the breach today to report from the opening of the new exhibition of art from the DPRK. I wish I could have been there myself. Thank you, Susan, and also to Jim Hoare for some additional material [Read More]
How many Koreans have never heard of Rain?
I don’t know the answer to that question. Maybe a reader can help. But seeing as I’m over in the States visiting my US co-workers right now, I thought I’d do a bit of market research. We had a team-building dinner yesterday. And on an impulse, I asked the person sitting next to me: so … [Read More]
London & South East to coordinate Korea campaign
A press release issued yesterday: Think London and South East England Development Agency join forces in promoting London and South East in Korea July 18, 2007 Think London, the foreign direct investment agency for London, and SEEDA, the South East England Development Agency, announced the establishment of their joint representative office based at KOTRA in … [Read More]
Book review: Ha-Joon Chang — Bad Samaritans
Random House, 2007 Read a typical book which espouses liberal free-trade globalisation and a typical reaction is “Yes, but…” Books such as “Lexus and the Olive Tree” are well written, and carry you along in the sweep of the argument. But you have a niggling sense of unease that something must be wrong with what’s … [Read More]