For the fifth year, the Korean Craft and Design Foundation put on a splendid show at Collect. As in previous years, the stall showcased a range of crafts – from jewellery and lacquer to ceramics and more – with this year the theme being “Meditative Art”. The dramatic ceramic piece entitled Sea by Lee Eun … [Read More]
LKL articles by Philip Gowman (page 35)
Yi Han-eung remembered at BKS Seollal celebration
The British Korean Society gathered on the newly refurbished top floor of the South Korean embassy yesterday for a belated celebration of Seollal, courtesy of the Deputy Head of Mission, Minister Sun Nahmkook. Apart from the generous buffet, a splendid selection of innovative cocktails and the opportunity to socialise, the highlight of the evening was … [Read More]
Lee Ufan’s Relatum – Stage, by the Serpentine
“It is our dream come true to work with Lee Ufan in London” enthused Hans Ulrich Obrist at the KCCUK talk which marked the installation of Lee’s Relatum – Stage outside the Serpentine Gallery on 6 February. After Lee’s hugely high-profile project at Versailles in 2014, with such a dramatic backdrop, the siting in a … [Read More]
Korea Future Initiative publishes #UsToo report on North Korea
The #MeToo campaign is generating so much news in South Korea that it could be easy to forget that the same issues exist, to a greater degree, north of the border. Korea Future Initiative is a London-based organisation that rescues vulnerable North Koreans, reports and investigates human rights violations, and provides redress for exiles through … [Read More]
Peggy Gou’s busy couple of weeks in London
Berlin-based Korean DJ Peggy Gou seems to be everywhere right now: on the March cover of British music magazine Mixmag… …where she provides this month’s cover mix; …on BBC Radio 1, where she made her Essential Mix debut in the small hours of yesterday morning, with the BBC’s Pete Tong introducing her as ‘arguably the … [Read More]
Exhibition visit: Kim Minjung – The Memory of Process
Looking at the image which publicises Kim Minjung’s solo exhibition The Memory of Process at White Cube, you wonder how it is that she came to be branded as a Dansaekhwa artist. The busy, multicoloured concentric circles, like patterns made by raindrops in a psychedelic puddle, are miles away from the austere, minimalist calm that … [Read More]
Guardian suggests Korean thrillers are the new Scandi Noir
It was not long ago that people were lamenting the absence of Korean genre fiction – such as crime and mystery stories – in translation. Well, apparently, things are changing. An article in Saturday’s Guardian talks about a “wave of interest in Korean thrillers” – highlighting the six-figure sum which bought Doubleday the right to … [Read More]
LKL at 12 years old
Yesterday was LKL’s 12th birthday: we went online on 1 March 2006. I never thought I’d keep going for the full 12 year cycle of the zodiac and more. Thanks to you readers, and to those who help out by feeding me information and views. And of course thanks to those who have written articles … [Read More]
March events 2018
A busy month this month, both in London and further afield. And, if you happen to be passing a newsagents, you might want to pick up this month’s Monocle which has a 48-page section devoted to South Korea, and interviews with President Moon, the First Lady and the Mayor of Seoul. Their travel guide to … [Read More]
Theatre visit: 1446 – The Story of King Sejong the Great
Visitors to Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Square, and anyone with a cursory acquaintance with Korean history, will know of the existence of King Sejong. His statue dominates the broad avenue that leads southwards from Gwanghwamun itself, gazing into the distance towards the other great hero of Joseon history, Admiral Yi Sun-shin. Are the life and achievements of … [Read More]
Luther, Mistresses, Life on Mars get Korean remakes
A small number of BBC TV shows have a keen following in Korea, as can be seen from a Sherlock-themed cafe in Gangnam to the popularity of the Doctor Who world tour in 2014. And it may also be remembered that Luther won Best Mini-Series at Seoul International Drama Awards in 2011. Now Luther is to … [Read More]
In memory of Hwang Byung-ki
In memory of the great man, here’s a video interview on Arirang TV uploaded in January 2015: And here he is playing one of his best-known compositions, Chimhyangmoo (침향무 | 沈香舞), performed on the KBS show Gugak Hanmadang. The definitive obituary in English has been written by Jocelyn Clark in the Asia Times. I was … [Read More]
Javier Cha on the uses of digitised historical data
Last night at SOAS there was a choice of two early evening events to start the weekend. I only heard about the appearance of South Korean queer artist and activist Heezy Yang (aka Hurricane Kimchi) two hours before the event, and I had already prepared myself mentally for the Centre of Korean Studies seminar on … [Read More]
February events 2018
Before anything else, can we please have one minute’s silence in memory of the great gayageum master Hwang Byung-ki, who passed away yesterday aged 82. —— Thank you. —— And now for February’s events —— The year seemed to start slowly, but it soon picked up with all sorts of events popping up from out … [Read More]
Congratulations to the KCCUK: 10 years old today
The Korean Cultural Centre opened the doors for its launch party ten years ago today, on 30 January 2008. Jennifer Barclay, author of Meeting Mister Kim, was there to cover the event for LKL. It’s been a hectic 10 years since then: 10 film festivals 245 film screenings (not counting collateral screenings in places like … [Read More]
Made in Korea – the video
Kay Aplin of the Ceramic House in Brighton, who masterminded the Korea-UK Made in Korea ceramic collaboration last year, has completed a 20-minute video documentary of the project. Well worth a viewing in full: Please browse Kay’s blog of the whole project including the reciprocal exhibition at the Mullae Art Factory in Seoul. In England, … [Read More]