London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

Obsession: Jaeho Park solo show at Mokspace

Notice of the next exhibition at Mokspace: Obsession Jaeho Park Solo Exhibition Private View: 6.00 – 8.30pm Wednesday 18th September 2013 Exhibition: 18th Sep – 5th Oct 2013 33 Museum Street | London WC1A 1LH | T: +44 (0) 20 7637 8880 | W: www.mokspace.com Mokspace warmly invites you to indulge in Obsession, an exposition … [Read More]

2013 Travel Diary #34: The Gods of Land and Grain

Deoksugung, Jung-gu, Seoul, Sunday 15 September, 10:45am.  By the time I reach the Deoksu Palace at 10:45am I’m already perspiring. I was wearing sunblock, but should have been wearing a sunhat and some shorts. It was going to be a hot day. This morning’s activity is a guided walk following the Sajik Daeje procession from … [Read More]

2013 Travel Diary #33: An evening in Daehakro

Buamdong, Seoul, Saturday 14 September, 6pm.  Seoul Museum in Buamdong (not to be confused with the Seoul Museum of Art in Jeongdong, or indeed the Seoul Museum of History next to the Gyeonghuigung) is conveniently situated on the main road which takes traffic from northern to Seoul to the Gwanghwamun area. Emerging from the museum, … [Read More]

2013 Travel Diary #32: The Seokpajeong — a haven of peace in Buamdong

Seoul Museum, Buamdong, Seoul, Saturday 14 September, 5pm.  There are two main reasons to visit Seoul Museum apart from any temporary exhibition that might be taking place: the important collection of 20th Century Korean art which seems to be on permanent display, and the Seokpajeong, the Joseon dynasty villa once occupied by the Daewongun. The … [Read More]

2013 Travel Diary #31: We are all heroes – Baseball and the Bull at Seoul Museum

Seoul Museum, Buamdong, Seoul, Saturday 14 September, 4pm. Seoul Museum’s current exhibition focuses on Park Chan-ho, an inspirational baseball player who played in the US, including at the LA Dodgers, in a career that spanned 18 years from 1994 to 2012. An oversized sculpture of him in Gwon Osang’s familiar style greets you as you … [Read More]

2013 Travel Diary #30: New Connections

Museum of Modern Art, Gwacheon-si, Saturday 14 September, 1:30pm. I’m still wandering around some of the museum’s permanent collection when my phone rings and my 3pm appointment wonders if they can shift to 2:30pm. It’s 1:30pm by now, and City Hall is a one hour journey away, so the proposed new time is going to … [Read More]

2013 Travel Diary #28: Clubbing with the CFOs

Gangnam, Seoul, Friday 13 September, 5pm. As usual, traffic south of the river is gridlocked. I can see it’s going to take a while to get to civilisation. The cab driver seems to be getting frustrated by the jams (who wouldn’t be?) and I’m regretting that I have luggage, otherwise it would have been so … [Read More]

2013 Travel Diary #27: Last day at the Expo

Donguibogam Village, Sancheong-gun, Friday 13 September, 7am. There’s still a long list of things I have to do before leaving. We have to pay a courtesy call on the mayor to say farewell, plus I want to pay a last visit to the Festival. And of course I need to gather everything together, trying to … [Read More]

Edinburgh Fringe visit: Norian Maro — Pudasi

Norian Maro is a performance group based in Jeju-do which was founded in 2005 as a samulnori group. It has since broadened its range, so that the piece presented at the Edinburgh Fringe this year was a mixture of shamanistic and folk music as well as the familiar village percussion sounds, together with some contemporary … [Read More]

2013 Travel Diary #26: The first round of farewells

Donguibogam Village, Sancheong-gun, Thursday 12 September, 12 noon. After a refreshing herbal tea, it was time for lunch: Sancheong Beef bulgogi with Mr Byeon, Min Hyang-sik and Min Young-ki. Not only barbecued beef, but in increasing order of difficulty, raw beef fillet, raw beef liver, and raw beef lung. I really struggled with the last … [Read More]

2013 Travel Diary #25: The Hallyu 4.0 Experience

Donguibogam Village, Sancheong-gun, Thursday 12 September, 9am. At the main entrance to the Expo there is a long parade of information booths and gift stalls. One of the booths was there to promote Hallyu 4.0. Hallyu 1.0 and Hallyu 2.0 are the first and second waves of Korean pop culture spreading through Asia. First came … [Read More]