Too many books, not enough time to read them, or space to store them. Encouragingly, in a skim of the upcoming publication lists I had no problems finding plenty of books on a wide range of interesting topics. No longer it seems is the reading public (or the publishers’ perception thereof) solely interested in that … [Read More]
LKL articles by Philip Gowman (page 36)
UK military develops plans for rescuing Brits
Apparently the MoD have been doing some contingency planning, and sent some top brass over to check out the lie of the land: Based on the information [Senior British military officers] collected, they are devising an evacuation plan for some 8,000 British civilians in South Korea (Chosun Ilbo). I suppose it was the responsible thing … [Read More]
Interview with Rejina Pyo in Korea JoongAng Daily
There’s a nice feature on London-based designer Rejina Pyo in the Korea JoongAng Daily. Pyo’s work particularly caught our eye in the February 2014 London Fashion Week. Here’s a quote from the interview: I want to design clothes that my friends tell me are gorgeous, rather than the glamorous dresses that celebrities like to wear. … [Read More]
New and upcoming literature and fiction titles for 2018
From classic Joseon dynasty ghost stories, via historical fiction set in the reign of Queen Min, to the latest in translated literature, we take a look at some of the books to look forward to in 2018. Our look at non-fiction titles can be found here. Contemporary Korean literature in translation Hwang Sok-yong’s novel At … [Read More]
BTS featured in BBC K-pop documentary
Adele Roberts, who hosts BBC Radio 1’s Early Breakfast Show, thrilled UK K-pop followers and BTS Army members on 2 October 2017 when she played BTS for the first time on the BBC as part of a Best New Pop feature. That track, DNA, along with Mic Drop, have featured several times on the BBC … [Read More]
The LKL quiz of the year 2017
I’m currently going through my 2017 press cuttings and trying to make sense of them, in the hope that as in (some) previous years I’ll be able to pull together a series of posts summarising some of the most newsworthy stories of the year. In case I don’t manage to get that done (after all, … [Read More]
On reading “Where Would You Like to Go?” for the Kim Aeran essay contest
I struggled with previous KLTI Essay Contests. With There a Petal Silently Falls, having read it three times, I still couldn’t find an angle into it, and although I wrote an essay it was a pretty uninspired offering. With Who Ate Up all the Shinga, I probably enjoyed the book more, but again couldn’t really connect … [Read More]
Trump book finds unexpected reader
I’m not sure who did the photoshopping (I came across it on this tweet, so I’ll credit @darren_tenerife) but it’s too good not to share: [Read More]
Handmaiden nominated for foreign language BAFTA
It’s up against four others including Paul Verhoeven’s Elle, but Park Chan-wook’s Handmaiden has made the shortlist announced yesterday for best feature film not in the English language. The shortlist was determined by an “opt-in chapter” of BAFTA voting members. The winners will be announced on 18 February. Films are only eligible to be entered into … [Read More]
A new year gift from the Korean Film Archive
Those nice people at the Korean Film Archive have given us a new year gift, in the form of twenty-one English subtitled classic movies newly uploaded to their YouTube channel. At least two of these have been available on subtitled DVD before (Come, Come, Come Upward and Gingko Bed) but I’m assuming these are new, … [Read More]
Exhibition visit: Young In Hong – The Moon’s Trick
The Moon’s Trick, a multi-faceted show featuring recent work of Young In Hong, was the 2017 KCC’s Artist of the Year exhibition. Hong’s work is multi-disciplinary. For a long while it has involved embroidery: LKL’s first encounter with her work was as part of the KCC’s opening exhibition curated by Jiyoon Lee back in 2008, … [Read More]
4482 Sasapari – Open Call for Artists
It’ll be nice to have Sasapari back. Korean artists: get your applications in by 15 February! Voices of Korean Contemporary Artists: Butterfly Effect 4482 (sasapari), a figure made from combining the calling codes of the UK (44) and South Korea (82), is the name adopted by a collective group of Korean Contemporary Artists. Since the … [Read More]
Becoming Who I Was gets brief theatrical release – catch it while you can!
Jeon Jin’s and Moon Chang-yong’s documentary Becoming Who I Was screened at the London Film Festival back in October. I wasn’t expecting much from it, but it made quite an impression on me, and it ended up being one of my films of the year. My brief review is here. Do try and catch this … [Read More]
January events 2018
A quiet start to the year – just as well: the last few months have been so hectic that we could do with a break. Exhibitions The Contemporary Korean Ceramics exhibition continues all month. Watch out for notices of open studios. Jewyo Rhii’s The Day 3, Walls and Barbed continues at Amanda Wilkinson Gallery until … [Read More]
President Moon’s 2018 New Year Message
Here is the text of President Moon Jae-in’s 2018 New Year Message, sourced from the Blue House website. Fellow Koreans, The New Year of 2018 has arrived. I hope each and every one of you and your family will enjoy better days filled with joy and laughter throughout the New Year. We all have prevailed … [Read More]
Kim Jong Un’s 2018 New Year Address
The following is the text of Kim Jong Un’s 2018 New Year Address, sourced from Rodong Sinmun: Respected Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un made the New Year Address for 2018. The full text of the New Year Address reads: Dear fellow countrymen and brave service personnel of the People’s Army, Dear compatriots, Today, recollecting with … [Read More]