Euny Hong: The Birth of Korean Cool How one nation is conquering the world through pop culture Simon & Schuster UK, 2014, 267pp Euny Hong’s first non-fiction book (we loved her novel) is in turn infuriating, entertaining and informative. Let’s get the infuriating bits done with first. In her approach to Romanization she is cavalier, … [Read More]
Month: November 2014
Suh Do-ho in Gazelli Art House group show
An interesting group show at Gazelli Art House which takes us through into the new year contains work by renowned sculptor Suh Do-ho. DOM Exhibition Dates: 28 November 2014 – 17 January 2015 Private View: 27 November 2014 Location: Gazelli Art House | 39 Dover Street | London W1S 4NN | gazelliarthouse.com Gazelli Art House … [Read More]
Taste of Korea promotion runs in over 60 Tesco stores
Experiment with Korean ingredients at Tesco for the next week or so. Taste of Korea is an annual event for promoting great Korean foods to UK and European markets, which is supported by the South Korean Embassy in the UK and by Korean food distributors and vendors such as Hankook Foods and CJ. The event … [Read More]
Joo Yeon Sir wins Karl Jenkins music performance prize
Congratulations to Joo Yeon Sir for winning The Arts Club Karl Jenkins Classical Music Award in association with Classic FM (and a cheque for £4,000). Joo Yeon will now record a piece of her choice and a short work composed especially by Karl Jenkins, both of which will be broadcast on Classic FM Read more … [Read More]
LKFF 2014: the conversations
The London Korean Film Festival is not just about getting acquainted with the latest in Korean movies. It is also an opportunity to meet some of the people behind those movies – actors, directors and producers. Opportunities for engaging with these film professionals vary: for an ever-growing group of aficionados there is the offer of round-table … [Read More]
Ahn Sung-ki interview: a life in acting
Ahn Sung-ki reflects on Korean cinema’s roots in historical trauma, its role in addressing social issues, and his career choices under censorship and change. He discusses long collaborations with Im Kwon-taek, the importance of scripts and emotional depth, evolving acting freedoms, international productions, and his belief that cinema’s power lies in moving hearts rather than scale or fame. [Read More]
Obsessed (인간중독, 2014) review: shattered duty and forbidden desires
‘Obsessed’ for the most part succeeds in being a sensual, brooding and beautifully slow-burning tale of forbidden love, but while director Kim Dae-woo’s expertise in depicting palpably erotically-charged narratives serves as one of the film’s many strong points his decision to pile ‘final’ melodramatic moment on top of final melodramatic moment is easily its weakest. [Read More]
Kyung Wha Chung returns with UK recitals and 20-disk retrospective
Kyung Wha Chung returns to the concert platform in the UK this month for the first time in over a decade, with sonata performances in Liverpool (22 November), Perth (27 November) and London (2 December). Simultaneously a boxed set of all her Decca recordings (together with a couple from the Deutsche Grammophon catalogue) is being … [Read More]
Park Chan-kyong interview: Manshin, Asian Gothic and artistic autonomy
Park Chan-kyong discusses financing Manshin outside the studio system, balancing artistic freedom with commercial pressures, and his recurring focus on shamanism, tradition and “Asian gothic” aesthetics. He reflects on collaboration with his brother Park Chan-wook, the creative value of short films, digital democratisation of filmmaking, and Korea’s layered relationship with its past. [Read More]
Festival Film Review: Hwajang / Revivre
Well, I was right. Ahn Sung-ki confessed in the Q+A which followed the screening of Hwajang that one of his most difficult tasks in portraying Oh Sang-moo, a senior executive in a cosmetics company, was to project certain aspects of being old – of being blocked inside because of the swollen prostate, of being more … [Read More]
Festival film review: Bitter, Sweet, Seoul
Bitter, Sweet, Seoul is an ambitious crowd-sourced project in which people from around the world were invited by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to submit videos which would be made into feature length film. Directors (and brothers) Park Chan-wook and Park Chan-kyong (collectively PARKing CHANce) were commissioned to organise the submissions, attracted to the project by … [Read More]
July Jung interview: loneliness, damage and connection in “A Girl at My Door”
July Jung discusses the obstacles facing female filmmakers in Korea, the precarious path to making A Girl at My Door, and her focus on loneliness, abuse, sexuality and prejudice. She explains the rural setting as a social microcosm, her collaboration with Lee Chang-dong, and her belief that intimate, local stories can achieve universal resonance. [Read More]
LKFF2014 – the reviews
This year there have been more reviewers than ever covering the Korean Film Fest. Here are links to some of the reviews, to which I’ll add as and when I spot new ones. Films are listed in the order in which they screened. Title Director Reviews EK = Eastern Kicks | HC = Hangul Celluloid … [Read More]
Discover Korea: How much do you know about Korea?
Yes, I know you’re all focused on the Film Festival right now, but here are some interesting things for your diary later this month. Note that RSVPs to these talks are to the Embassy, not the KCC. Discover Korea: How much do you know about South Korea? Four talks on Korean Culture | Economy | … [Read More]
Bada Song: Noon Shadows, at the new Tea Museum Art Space and Cafe, opening on 10 Nov
10 November 2014 sees the launch of an interesting Anglo-Korean venture: The Tea Museum Art Space and Cafe. The brainchild of David and Jade Kilburn, the venture is based close to the Changdeokgung, at 61 Changdeokgung-gil: The cake counter looks as if it deserves some serious attention: and you can buy specially blended tea while … [Read More]
Exhibition news: Lee Kang-hyo at Goldmark Gallery, Uppingham
Those who were impressed by the work of Lee Kang-hyo at Tent London this year will be happy to hear that he has a solo show at Goldmark Gallery in Uppingham. If you miss the exhibition, there is a selection of his works available online. Lee Kang-hyo Exhibition 15th November – 14th December 2014 Goldmark … [Read More]