When I told someone at the (virtually empty) office on the first Friday of the new decade that I would be spending the weekend at a two-day conference on BTS, he at first looked blank. I had to explain to him that they’re a K-pop boy band, at which he grinned and urged me to […]
Places: Kingston + New Malden
A review of the Korean cultural year 2019
A review of some of the highlights and trends in the Korean cultural year, primarily in London but also with half an eye to anything we might have seen elsewhere in the UK. The review is a personal one, inevitably skewed towards the events we managed to get to. Introduction This time last year I […]
Making and Sharing Kimchi Project: the 2019 Kimjang Festival
The culmination of many months’ preparation is here. Kimjang: Making and Sharing Kimchi is a project made possible by money raised by National Lottery players. It involves recording, archiving and distributing 20 authentic kimchi recipes and personal Kimjang experiences from North, South and Chinese-Korean residents, and hosting an annual Kimjang Festival on New Malden High […]
BTS: A Global Interdisciplinary Conference Project at Kingston University
Media & Communications & Music at Kingston University present: BTS (방탄소년단): A Global Interdisciplinary Conference Project Dates: Saturday 4 January – Sunday 5 January 2020 Venue: John Galsworthy Building | Penrhyn Road campus | Penrhyn Road | Kingston upon Thames | Surrey KT1 2EE Price: to be confirmed Booking and full conference programme is now […]
Video: Kingston Korean Harvest Fest 2019 ft The Move
It was glorious weather yesterday for Kingston’s Korean Harvest Fest – almost too hot for some of the energetic Kpop dancers and the visiting professionals from Korea. The ice cream sellers were doing brisk trade, as of course were the Korean food stalls that were set up down one side of the historic market place. […]
A visit to New Malden’s 2019 Korean Independence Day celebrations
Having arrived back in town from the Edinburgh Fringe around midnight the previous evening, I was never going to make it to the 11am speeches and other formalities that kick off the traditional Korean Independence Day celebrations in New Malden. But it was clear that there had been a good turnout: by the time I […]
Kingston’s Korean Harvest Festival 2019
This year’s Kingston Korean Harvest Festival, organised by Korean British Cultural Exchange, forms part of the broader Kingston River Heritage Festival in partnership with Totally Thames. One of the strands of the Harvest Fest is a community dance project, which will be repeated the following day, Sunday 15 September, in the Scoop outside City Hall, […]
Remembering the Sewol – the campaign’s next phase
This month Remembering Sewol UK is moving from their regular location at Trafalgar Square, where they have had a monthly presence for over five years, to New Malden – London’s ‘Koreatown’. They will be providing leaflets, yellow ribbons and badges to the public and engage in conversation with those who are interested in or affected […]
2019 Independence Day Korean Festival in New Malden
The celebrations by the Korean community are often a word-of-mouth thing. Everyone knows they’re going to happen — at least, everyone in the Korean community — but no-one seems to want to publicise it to non-Koreans. So credit to Wook Kim for posting a video about the upcoming New Malden celebrations on Facebook. The festivals […]
Call for Papers – BTS: A Global Interdisciplinary Conference Project
The call for papers has been issued for the long-planned conference on BTS: Call for Papers – BTS: A Global Interdisciplinary Conference Project Kingston University, January 4-5, 2020 Korean boy group BTS are the first ever Korean act to perform at Wembley Stadium as part of their Love Yourself: Speak Yourself world tour. Debuting in 2013 under […]
Korean Arts Festival 2019 in Kingston Parish Church
Korean senior citizens display their talents, along with the Thames Philharmonia, on 4 May: Korean Arts Festival 2019 All Saints Church Kingston | 14-16 Market Place | Kingston upon Thames KT1 1JP Saturday 4 May 2019, 4pm Tickets: £12 (Performance+ Including 1 glass of wine) | Early Bird Ticket £10 | Under 13 & Over […]
Kingston School of Art and Royal School of Needlework collaborate with Hanbok Advancement Centre
The first stage of an innovative collaboration between the Hanbok Advancement Centre, Kingston School of Art and the Royal School of Needlework had its first public exhibition last week at Kingston University’s Stanley Picker Gallery. The collaboration was the brainchild of Justina Jang, who through Korean British Cultural Exchange shares Korean culture with London and […]
Hanbok-inspired fashion on show in Kingston University
An international project in which the Royal School of Needlework collaborated with the Korean Hanbok Advancement Centre, KBCE and Kingston University, has offered a unique opportunity for students to create exhibitable works which creatively reinterpreted elements of the traditional Korean dress (Hanbok) using both traditional and contemporary hand embroidery techniques. The finished pieces by Kingston […]
The Kimjang Project is officially launched
The Kimjang Project launched yesterday in New Malden with congratulatory messages from the Mayor of Kingston Thay Thayalan and the local MP Sir Ed Davey among others. The project celebrates the various aspects of kimjang, for example the communal character of kimchi-making and its health-giving properties. New Malden, sometimes known as New Mal-dong (뉴몰동), as […]
Kimjang: Making and Sharing Kimchi – launch event in New Malden
Korean British Cultural Exchange, the people who bring you the Korean festival in Kingston market square at Chuseok time, have received Heritage Lottery funding for a Kimjang event at the end of November. The project has a launch event in February. KBCE are always seeking volunteers to help in their cultural projects: do think about […]
Little Pyongyang Screening with Q+A with Mr Choi
Join the Korea Future Initiative and Connect: North Korea on Dec 3rd for the first screening of ‘Little Pyongyang’ to feature a Q&A with the documentary’s star, Mr Choi Joong-hwa. The screening will take place in New Malden Methodist Church. Doors open at 7.15pm. Tickets in advance are £5; £7 on the doors. Proceeds will […]
Photo gallery: Kingston Korean Harvest Fest 2018
The weather wasn’t very kind to the organisers and visitors for the 2018 Chuseok celebrations in Kingston’s market square. But still there was an enthusiastic turnout, especially for the Kpop performances. LKL managed to make it towards the end of the afternoon, which means we missed the opening ceremony with the Korean ambassador and Ed […]