Chris Springer: North Korea Caught in Time – Images of War and Reconstruction with introductory essay by Balázs Szalontai. Garnet Publishing, 2010 (148pp) In the English-speaking world, the story of the Korean war and its aftermath, if told at all, is told first from the perspective of the US and UN combatants that came to … [Read More]
Category: 1945-1960 (page 5)
Colour photos of Korea in the 1950s
So unusual to see colour photos of Korea in the 1950s. Sorry I missed this talk by Dr John Cornes – last week’s Global Korea Lecture at the KCC. http://bit.ly/fuZjvR # [Read More]
Book review: Kim Sok-pom — The Curious Tale of Mandogi’s Ghost
Kim Sok-pom: The Curious Tale of Mandogi’s Ghost Translated by Cindi Textor Columbia University Press, 2010 (114pp) Originally published in Japanese, 1970. What seems to be new entrant in the Korean literature in translation market is more complicated than it first seems. The author, Kim Sok-pom, is actually a second-generation zainichi Korean resident in Japan, … [Read More]
Imjin remembered in Ale
What a great way to commemorate a landmark battle: Glorious Gloster Ale brewed to mark the 60th anniversary of the Imjin battle, says This Is Gloucestershire. Must get myself a pint or three. http://bit.ly/hmbDNw # [Read More]
Korea in the mid-fifties – historic slides
Two upcoming opportunities to see historic photographs of the Korean peninsula in the 1950s. First, courtesy of the Anglo Korean Society, photos of South Korea at the KCC. Details below. Watch this space for photos of North Korea at SOAS in May. KOREA IN THE MID-FIFTIES – HISTORIC SLIDES A talk and slide show by … [Read More]
Book Review: Lark and Termite. (Densely poetic and powerful, apparently)
Jayne Anne Phillips: Lark and Termite Vintage Books, 2009 Surely the most carefully crafted sentence in a novel is the opening one. So when a reader is faced with an opening sentence that would not only have the Microsoft grammar checker going crazy with those irritating green wiggly lines but which would fox a literate … [Read More]
Film review: 71 Into the Fire
71 Into the Fire, by director John H Lee (이재한), is a film based on a true story which occurred in the early months of the Korean War, when the northern armies swept all before them until they reached the Busan perimeter. A group of 71 student soldiers are given the job of defending a … [Read More]
Conference report: Korean War study day at Asia House
The 60th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950 has given rise to a number of commemorative events this year. In November it was the turn of BAKS to present their own event at Asia House – an all-day seminar entitled Reflections on War and Peace: Sixty Years after the Korean War. … [Read More]
Werner Bischof’s photos of the Korean War
Magnum photo essay on Korean War, focusing on the experience of civilians. Worth a look. A six-minute video showing the photographs of Werner Bischof with voiceover from people who experienced that time. http://bit.ly/dEz6Yw # [Read More]
Korean War: Memory and Legacy – at Asia House
The event originally scheduled for back in September is now taking place tomorrow, 1 December at Asia House. Korean War: Memory and Legacy, North and South Panellists include Daniel Levitsky and Michael Shin, chaired by Jim Hoare Wednesday 01 Dec, 2010 6:45 PM – 7:45 PM Location: Asia House Doors 18.30 The Korean war of … [Read More]
Appeal from the Soldiers of Gloucestershire Museum
The text of a fund-raising appeal on behalf of the Glosters. Please donate generously. The 60th Anniversary of the Battle of Imjin, Korea is in April 2011 where The Gloucestershire Regiment as part of 29 Brigade fought with great distinction. To commemorate the occasion the Soldiers of Gloucestershire Museum in Gloucester will produce a new … [Read More]
To the Last Round – a second look
A year ago Jennifer Barclay reviewed Andrew Salmon’s then recently published To the Last Round (TTLR), an account of the epic British stand at the Imjin River in Korea, 1951. She confessed to not being a fan of military history, and though her review was polite you can tell she really didn’t enjoy it. Spurred … [Read More]
Who Ate Up All The Shinga – a critical essay by Alice Bennell
Alice Bennell, UK winner of last year’s Korean Literature Translation Institute essay contest on “There a Petal Silently Falls”, contributes her entry for this year’s competition. Who Ate Up All the Shinga is an autobiographical novel chronicling the early life of the author, Park Wan-Suh. The Japanese occupation of Korea, and events leading up to … [Read More]
On the Line: photo exhibition commemorating the Korean War
Press release for the upcoming exhibition at the KCC: ROK Ministry of National Defense Hosts “On the Line” Photo Exhibition in United Kingdom to Commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the Korean War 10 Renowned Korean Photographers Present their stories on the on-going war Exhibition Dates : 8 September – 25 September 2010 On September 8th … [Read More]
2010 Travel Diary #31: Remembering the struggle against the partisans
Sancheong County, nestling at the feet of Jirisan in Gyeongsangnam-do, has two memorial museums to the struggle between the leftist partisans and the Southern military and civilian authorities at the time of the Korean War. The key headlines of the conduct of the Korean War itself are well known: the Northern sweep southwards, the UN … [Read More]
Remembering the Battle of the Imjin at the KCC
“I’ve met Tom Cruise, and now I’ve met Sam Mercer. And when I met Sam I was truly star-struck. The man’s a legend.” So said a member of the audience at the Korean Cultural Centre after an instructive talk by Andrew Salmon on the battle of the Imjin on 15 July. Sam Mercer was sitting … [Read More]