Reflecting on her KCCUK tenure, Dr Seunghye Sun outlines a strategy of partnership, emotional diplomacy and ‘digital humanism’, positioning Hallyu as an introduction to a deepening understanding of Korean culture. She discusses extending UK–Korea exchange beyond pop culture into literature, heritage, visual arts and technology, and argues that Korean soft power is widening, not peaking. [Read More]
Category: Interviews and features
Spontaneous improvisation, exhilarating energy: Won Il prepares Dionysus Robot for London
Won Il discusses his career over the past decade, including leading the Gyeonggi Sinawi Orchestra and developing Dionysus Robot, getting its UK premiere at K-Music 2025. He outlines his Sinawi-style composing, collaboration across disciplines, use of video and improvisation, Olympic ceremony experience, and the work’s evolving international versions, aiming to energise audiences through ritual, sound, and movement. [Read More]
Interview: Swag Age — Korean tradition in a contemporary musical comes to the West End
Guest contributor Timothy Holm meets the creatives behind the Joseon-era musical Swag Age, and gets to the bottom of the meaning of the catchy Oh-Eh-Oh! chorus. [Read More]
Musical journeys with violinist Joo Yeon Sir: an LKL interview
Seven years ago, thanks to the London Korean Links events listings, I went to see a young Korean violinist play a lunchtime recital at St Martin in The Fields. The violinist, Joo Yeon Sir, played a beautiful set of classical music accompanied by her pianist Irina Andrievsky. All perfectly lovely. Then came the fireworks – the … [Read More]
Yun Ko-eun on the humour to be found in nightmarish scenarios
The moderator was late, misdirected by a faulty map app. The interpreter’s pen ran out of ink, as did a replacement pen supplied by a member of the audience. A warning message popped up on screen warning those present that the KCC’s laptop battery was getting low. The PA system didn’t seem to be working. … [Read More]
Interview: Cho Jungrae (The Singer, 2020)
Director Cho Jungrae discusses his deep personal connection to Pansori, his hands-on role shaping the music “The Singer”, and the film’s dialogue between tradition and modernity. In this wide-ranging interview with Hangul Celluloid and LKL, he reflects on legacy, influence, and how traditional sound can still resonate with audiences today. [Read More]
The Drawing Hand: In Conversation With Illustrator Jieun Kim
The Christmas that just passed has been undoubtedly a quite different one. Many of us didn’t have a chance to spend the day with their loved ones and the joyful atmosphere that characterises one of the most loved and anticipated time of the year was dimmed by the still ongoing health emergency due to COVID-19. … [Read More]
Layers of paint, paintings of feelings: the abstract works of Sunyoung Hwang
Brush stroke after brush stroke, an artist can create a wonderland for the heart to explore feelings, emotions and, perhaps, also memories. The depth of life, the human emotional world and the experiences we go through can’t often be easily conveyed to others or even explained to oneself. Some argue that art is healing to … [Read More]
Journey Man: an interview with ceramic artist Jaejun Lee
Determination, dedication, precision, humbleness, outstanding results. These are some of the words that come to mind when thinking about the artworks Jaejun Lee (b.1987) creates in his studio after hours and hours spent on the wheel and with his tools. Counting ten thousand followers on Instagram, artist Lee is a young and talented ceramic artist … [Read More]
Rendered Reality: an interview with Joonhong Min and Shinuk Suh
New contributor Federica Ionta meets the artists behind Rendered Reality, the exhibition currently in suspended animation at the KCCUK. Thinking of Korean art, one might recall, for instance, pottery of exquisite quality, such as the iconic moon jars, or beautiful ink paintings. However, not all Korean artists stick to traditional shapes, materials and techniques. Artists … [Read More]
Sharing Dreams: Bongsu Park talks about her upcoming DREAM RITUAL performance
Dreams. Freud made a whole career out of them. We are supposed to have them every night, but most of the time we can’t remember them. Cultures around the world have myths and legends in which dreams are laden with symbolic and predictive power. And in Korea, in a quaint folk custom, dreams are bought … [Read More]
The end of the journey: desire, recognition and redemption in BTS’s “IDOL”
Dr Colette Balmain examines the culmination of the BTS Love Yourself series: “IDOL” is the lead single from BTS’s final album in the “Love Yourself” series. The series comprises one extended storyworld music video, Love Yourself 起 Wonder; one mini album, Love Yourself 承 Her; one full length album, Love Yourself 轉 Tear; and one … [Read More]
Korea – The Antifragile Kingdom
Editor’s note: every now and then Matthew Jackson submits a cracking article from out of nowhere. Here’s one such article which, if I may paraphrase, wonders whether maybe han is healthy. I hope it’s not too long before the next one! The author and philosopher Nicholas Nassim Taleb (of ‘Black Swan’ fame) developed a concept … [Read More]
Kwak Kyung-taek quizzed at the first LKFF on Typhoon, filming in Russia and more
Director Kwak Kyung-taek discusses the personal and political inspiration behind Typhoon, sharing stories of filming in Thailand and Russia, near-misses with natural disasters, and the challenges of producing one of Korea’s most expensive films. He also reflects on audience reactions, international perspectives, and his plans for future projects beyond big-budget action cinema. [Read More]
2015 Travel Diary day 11: a visit to Studio MWP
A behind-the-scenes glimpse inside Studio Meditation with a Pencil, home of Green Days and This Road Called Life. Director Ahn Jae-huun shares insights on upcoming projects, including A Thousand Years Together and short story adaptations Shower and The Shaman Sorceress, while visitors discover the charming, pencil-filled world where Korean animation comes to life. [Read More]
An interview with Sora Kim-Russell, translator of Hwang Sok-yong’s Princess Bari
Those of you who came along to the London Book Fair last year and were tantalised by seeing a translation of a passage from Hwang Sok-yong’s Princess Bari – at the time unpublished in English, and with no indication even that any more of the book had been translated – will be delighted by this … [Read More]