Since I did my 1 December events post, I’ve received a couple of updates which are now reflected in that post. First, I’ve received confirmation of the exhibition / puppet show on Saturday by Magenta Tan (née 진경신) at the Korean Register Office in New Malden this Saturday and Sunday (8/9 Dec). The show is … [Read More]
Year: 2007 (page 3)
The Korea Yearbook 2007
First, to note the publication of the 2007 Year Book, and to draw your attention to the call for papers for the 2008 Year Book. Articles in the 2007 yearbook deal with online grassroots journalism and participatory democracy, the Lone Star scandal, changing perceptions of inward direct investment, the impact of China’s economic ascendance, modern … [Read More]
LKL Critics’ Choice 2007: Jenny Wu
2007 was not an outstanding year for Korean music to be brutally honest. I found myself liking this song here and that song there, but only a few albums as a whole have commanded my attention this past year. The following are my top 5 picks for best Korean albums of 2007. My criteria for … [Read More]
From East to East: Time Space Extension
Arcadia A group exhibition with Korean and British artists: Dae Hun Kwon, Victoria Hall and Jin Kim 22 Novemeber 2007 – 12 January 2008 I-MYU Projects, 23 Charlotte Road, London EC2A 3PB Review by Beccy Kennedy Globalisation theory uses the term “time-space compression” (1) to elucidate the concept of a new world without distinct nations, … [Read More]
Seasonal gift ideas
As there are only 3 weeks left, here are some thoughts for solving some of your gift dilemmas: Book ideas James Church’s second novel in the Inspector O series: Hidden Moon. The first one was a corker. The second one: a bank robbery in Pyongyang, in broad daylight, by men in silk stockings? A lively … [Read More]
Us and Them in Kenkanryu
Wednesday’s talk on the Japanese manga Kenkanryu was packed to overflowing — a strong contrast with the generally much sparser attendance at the Centre for Korean Studies seminars. Whether that’s a reflection of the greater number of people enrolled in Japanese Studies courses, or the popular culture subject matter I don’t know. In these few … [Read More]
December events 2007
In the run up to the festive season we have the following events: Visual arts / crafts Sung Hwan Kim continues showing at the Wilkinson Gallery project space, a short stroll from Bethnal Green Tube Arcadia continues at I-MYU The Korean Contemporary Arts show returns to the Jerwood space, 171 Union Street London SE1 0LN, … [Read More]
Thank goodness for that
I’m not sure what audience BBC World TV is aimed at, and I’m not sure that the BBC know either, which is why it is so bland. And because the channel is done on a budget, the programmes are in part funded by advertisements, and the content is padded out by trailers and is endlessly … [Read More]
Mime at Barton Green with Ko Jae-kyung
It was a cold and frosty evening in New Malden (1). But inside the Barton Green Theatre it was warm and cosy. From the outside, the building looks like a cricket pavilion, but if so the green itself would not be large enough for a proper game. Inside it’s a small, welcoming community theatre, with … [Read More]
Suicide Notes – a brief review of Kim Young-ha’s I Have the Right to Destroy Myself
Kim Young-ha: I have the right to destroy myself Originally published 1996 Translation by Kim Chi-young, Harcourt, 2007 An entertaining book to read, but somehow difficult to distill and digest. The narrator, who makes a macabre living as a self-employed suicide counselor, bizarrely seeks out clients whose exits he facilitates. A small and eccentric cast … [Read More]
The Japanese anti-Korean wave, at SOAS
Although this is a bit last minute, readers might be interested in tomorrow’s Japan Research Centre Seminar, which concerns the nationalist manga phenomenon ‘Kenkanryu’ and the so-called ‘Anti-Korean Wave’ in Japan. Wednesday 28 November, 5pm, SOAS main buildings G51 “Surfing the neo-nationalist wave: a case study of the manga Kenkanryu” Dr Nicola Liscutin (Birkbeck College) [Read More]
Leonid Petrov at Chatham House
Korea Discussion Group Thursday 6th December 2007 “Squaring the Circle in North Korea: Pyongyang Strives for “Economic Miracle” (Domestic Politics and Socio-Economic Realities) Speaker: Leonid Petrov Lunch: 12.30-1.00 (£10.00 charge) Meeting: 1.00-2.00pm Film Screening: 2.15 — 4.15pm Chair: Jim Hoare The talk will draw heavily on the findings of a recent visit to the DPRK … [Read More]
Book review: Brother One Cell
Cullen Thomas: Brother One Cell — Coming of Age in South Korea’s Prisons Pan Books, 2007 A “powerful, harrowing and moving memoir”, proclaims the blurb on the back. “A Korean tear in the muscle round the ribs, a Korean hernia…” reads the selective quote. The cover design, a Getty image of hands grasping prison bars, … [Read More]
Coming soon: LKL albums of the year
Fed up with mediocre K-pop acts being showered with awards? December is the month when LKL critics, and hopefully readers as well, will be awarding prestigious accolades to Korean musicians based on their artistic merit rather than the skills of their choreographers, publicity managers and plastic surgeons. LKL Critics’ Choice A couple of months ago … [Read More]
Concert notes: Choi Jin at SOAS
Concerts at SOAS always seem to have a good turn-out. Monday (19 November) was no exception when Choi Jin and colleagues presented a programme of modern compositions and arrangements of music for traditional Korean instruments. Keith Howard provided some informative introductions to the music to be performed, which provided useful context as well as some … [Read More]
Technology in the wrong hands – a review of Robert A Kaiser’s Project Yellow Sky
Robert A Kaiser: Project Yellow Sky — A Korean Conspiracy (Authorhouse, November 2006) Those who visit websites with Korea-related content may have come across advertisements for this book in the Google Ads panel. A topical thriller, about the North Koreans trying to steal nuclear secrets… it must be worth putting in the suitcase for a … [Read More]