The upcoming exhibition at the KCC is by Yeji Kim, winner of the KCC’s 2017 Open Call: Yeji Kim: Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things A series of paintings which explore a sense of the virtual world, inspired by the flatness of images found on social media platforms. 27 February – 18 March 2017 Korean … [Read More]
Year: 2017 (page 21)
The advance of Korea’s longevity
According to a study by Imperial College London and the World Health Organisation, “average life expectancy is set to increase in many countries by 2030 – and will exceed 90 years in South Korea.” The press release accompanying the report revealed: The five countries with the highest life expectancy at birth for men in 2030 were: … [Read More]
Event news: Deborah Smith on translating Bae Suah
Deborah Smith’s latest Bae Suah translation, Recitation, is now available in bookshops. This month you have the opportunity to hear some of the challenges of translating it, courtesy of SOAS’s Centre for Translation Studies: Close to a State of Linguistic Weightlessness: On Translating Bae Suah Dr Deborah Smith (Korean-English translator, Publisher/Editor at Tilted Axis Press) … [Read More]
Event news: Red Shoes is the second movie in the KCC’s K-horror series
The second of six weekly screenings of horror movies and thrillers – a series curated by Collette Balmain – will be introduced by Hangul Celluloid’s Paul Quinn. We are assured that the gremlins that infected the DVD player at last week’s screening have been exorcised. Red Shoes (분홍신) Dir: Kim Yong-gyoon, 2005 (103 mins) 7pm, … [Read More]
UK/Korea Creative Futures is launched
Here is the official announcement from the British Council of the collaboration with Korea over the next two years: British Council announces UK/KOREA Creative Futures 2017 London, 20 February 2017. The British Council today officially launched UK/KOREA Creative Futures 2017, a year-long celebration of the long-standing relationship between the UK and Korea which will see … [Read More]
Gallery: Korean Artists at London Art Fair 2017
A quick post to upload some of the photos of the various galleries exhibiting Korean art at this year’s London Art Fair (plus one gallery that I missed). Hanmi Gallery Jaye Moon Jaye Moon’s work had been getting a fair amount of attention – guerrilla-style installations of Lego dotted around the Business Design Centre and … [Read More]
The mystery of Kim Jong Nam’s assassination solved
You couldn’t make this up. Or maybe you could and they did. Even though I suspect it’s a fake front page posted online to make people go out and hunt down the paper itself (which I would do if it weren’t so cold outside), it’s still too good not to share. Thanks to Paul Matthews … [Read More]
LKL’s evening with Zion.T in Kentish Town
On the very rare occasions when I go to a big popular music concert I usually end up wondering why. A couple of years ago I queued for ages to get into the cheap seats (£77) for Big Bang’s gig in Wembley Arena. At least they didn’t have a support act, and worked hard to … [Read More]
Suh Do-ho: a popular local attraction
It was good to see people queuing to get into Suh Do-ho’s solo show at Victoria Miro yesterday, a pleasant stroll along the Grand Union Canal from the Angel. I was going to go to the exhibition myself, but it’s the sort of work where you’re better off with only one or two people in … [Read More]
Exhibition visit: KAA residency — I, Kid
For their January 2017 exhibition and performance at the KCC, the Korean Artists Association chose nostalgia for childhood as their theme. The text which follows is from the exhibition catalogue, with installation shots mainly by LKL. I, Kid. 우리어릴적 Childhood memories are special to all of us. They do not disappear, but are planted in … [Read More]
Exhibition news: North Korean Paintings — Beyond Borders, Beauty, at Coningsby Gallery
Late notice of an exhibition of a private collection of paintings by North Korean artists. Thanks to Hannah Giles and Marc Leggett for bringing this to my attention. North Korean Paintings: Beyond Borders, Beauty Thu, 16 Feb 2017, 10:00 AM – Sun, 19 Feb 2017, 9:00 PM The Coningsby Gallery | 30 Tottenham Street | … [Read More]
Event news: the first KCC House Concert of the year is with Joo Yeon Sir
The KCC has been holding an open call for Korean musicians to perform in their series of “House Concerts”. That application period closes on 19 February. In the meanwhile, a supremely talented duo will be giving the first recital of the year: KCC House Concert: Joo Yeon Sir (violin), Irina Andrievsky (piano) Tues 21 Feb, … [Read More]
A survey of post-millennials – and South Korea shows its expected malaise
Another of those surveys, and guess where South Korea ends up in the rankings? As you might expect from the land of Hell Joseon, the statistics do not look great: second from bottom in terms of overall happiness. Around 1,000 15-21-year-olds from each of 20 countries were surveyed between September and October 2016 as part … [Read More]
2017 KCC film nights kick off with Princess Aurora
The 2017 film screenings at the KCC start with a season of horror movies and thrillers curated by Colette Balmain. Princess Aurora (오로라 공주) Dir: Bang Eun-jin, 2005, 106 mins 16 February 2017, 7pm @ KCCUK Book via the KCCUK website The directorial debut of Bang Eun-jin, Princess Aurora is a female take on the … [Read More]
Zion.T plays the O2 Forum, Kentish Town
At the time of writing, tickets are still available for Zion.T’s concert on 17 February. His latest album was released earlier this month, and is available on iTunes. You can catch some tracks from the support act, Choice 37, on SoundCloud. More details on the Cult of Ya’s event page. Zion.T in London O2 Forum … [Read More]
Choe Il presents his credentials as DPRK ambassador
Embed from Getty Images From the Court Circular page of the Buckingham Palace website: 9 February 2017: His Excellency Mr. Choe Il was received in audience by The Queen today and presented the Letters of Recall of his predecessor and his own Letters of Credence as Ambassador from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to … [Read More]