London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

Gallery: START Art Fair 2020

A few installation views of the Korean artists and galleries displaying work at START Art Fair in the Saatchi Gallery at the end of October: A show-stopping display of Ceviga’s work by Skipwiths – who also introduced a work by Kim Hayoung; Intricate musical sculptures by Eunhyue Shin – constructed in part from broken musical … [Read More]

A round-up of current and recent exhibitions

Since the lifting of most of lockdown restrictions put in place at the height of the pandemic, Korean art-related events have recently resumed in the UK. The KCCUK programme, once the Rendered Reality exhibition by Joonhong Min and Shinuk Suh closed, moved on to Seoul Unfolded, a display of architectural projects and works featuring the … [Read More]

The Korean Villages of Joung Young-ju

I’ve been really impressed by the atmosphere created by Joung Young-ju’s paintings. Villages densely populate hillsides and valleys and fickle lights evoke feelings of intimacy and warmth. Sunrise and sunset define a special time of the day which forms a connection between two separate moments: day and night. And, hence, it feels like an ethereal … [Read More]

Rendered Reality: an interview with Joonhong Min and Shinuk Suh

New contributor Federica Ionta meets the artists behind Rendered Reality, the exhibition currently in suspended animation at the KCCUK. Thinking of Korean art, one might recall, for instance, pottery of exquisite quality, such as the iconic moon jars, or beautiful ink paintings. However, not all Korean artists stick to traditional shapes, materials and techniques. Artists … [Read More]

Gallery: Joonhong Min in Rendered Reality

Here are some images of Joonhong Min’s works installed at the KCCUK as part of the Rendered Reality exhibition. (1) The main installation: The Debris from the Future Past (2019). (2) Urban methodology: the monochrome section! (3) The Past is Not Done with You … all showing a meticulous attention to detail combined with an … [Read More]

Gallery: Shinuk Suh in Rendered Reality

Here are some images of Shinuk Suh’s works installed at the KCCUK as part of the Rendered Reality exhibition. (1) The main installation: Man(u)fractured #2, based on his residency at Unit 1 Gallery | Workshop: (2) The eye-catching window display. By coincidence, while the exhibition was on, the FT ran a feature on Chinese manufacturing … [Read More]

Gallery: Joo Yeon Park’s Library of the Unword

As described in the exhibition notice, Joo Yeon Park’s Library of the Unword and its central piece Twenty Times a Thousand (2019) is inspired by Beckett’s poem Echo’s Bones. According to the artist, Echo in Beckett’s poem Echo’s Bones (1935) refers to the nymph in Ovid’s Metamorphoses who is punished by Juno so that she … [Read More]

A round-up of three early January exhibitions

LKL visits three solo shows in the first two weeks of 2020: Suh Shinuk, Song Gin-young and Kang Jungsuck. Hopefully we’ll get to Tate Modern to see the big Nam June Paik exhibition before it closes. Suh Shinuk: Man(u)fractured Suh Shinuk’s Man(u)fractured has been extended for a week, to 18 January. It’s well worth a … [Read More]

A review of the Korean cultural year 2019

A review of some of the highlights and trends in the Korean cultural year, primarily in London but also with half an eye to anything we might have seen elsewhere in the UK. The review is a personal one, inevitably skewed towards the events we managed to get to. Introduction This time last year I … [Read More]

Exhibition visit: Najeon and Ottchil, at Asia House

The current exhibition at Asia House, featuring exquisite work by contemporary master craftsmen and women, celebrates 70 years of diplomatic relations between the UK and the Republic of Korea. Najeon is the craft of decoration using mother of pearl, usually made from abalone shells, while Ottchil is the craft of creating objects out of lacquer. … [Read More]