London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

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Selected publications

[Nottingham] The Real DMZ at New Art Exchange

A three-month exhibition in Nottingham as part of the UK-Korea year of cultural exchange: The Real DMZ New Art Exchange | 39-41 Gregory Boulevard | Nottingham NG7 6BE | www.nae.org.uk 27 January – 15 April 2018 The Real DMZ: Artistic encounters through Korea’s demilitarized zone has been curated by Sunjung KIM and The Real DMZ … [Read More]

The DMZ Garden gets its finishing touches

With the Chelsea Flower Show having its first judging day tomorrow (Sunday), all the show gardens have to be finished today. Yesterday Hwang Jihae’s team was boosted by some additional volunteers to help finish off the last details. The professionals did some final planting, filling in one or two gaps under the demanding and perfectionist … [Read More]

The DMZ as eco-tourism – and as a garden

South Korea is turning the DMZ into eco-tourism zone, says Lucy Williamson on the BBC. Hwang Jihae’s DMZ Garden at the Chelsea Flower Show this year is looking increasingly relevant. Links: LKL’s complete coverage of Hwang Jihae’s gardens at Chelsea 2012 and 2011 Quiet Time: DMZ Forbidden Garden on Facebook. Please donate using the Paypal … [Read More]

My Love DMZ comes to Kingston

“Love” and “DMZ” do not often appear together in the same sentence. But this is the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War, and there’s a special production as part of the New Malden Arts Festival on 20th July. And in a special deal, LKL readers will get free admission to the performance … [Read More]

Book review: Life on the Edge of the DMZ

Lee See-woo: Life on the Edge of the DMZ Global Oriental, 2008 Translated by Kim Myung-hee I’ve been dipping in and out of this fascinating though often overly complex book by peace activist Lee Si-Woo. It’s sometimes hard to tell whether the English translation – for the most part unfussy ­– is sometimes too literal, … [Read More]

Visit Korea, experience the Cold War

Coming to the Travel Channel this autumn is a new travel documentary on Korea. At the Korea Tourism evening at the KCC last week we were given a preview. It was refreshing: a Korean tourism documentary, but from a Westerner’s perspective. Yes, we were told that the KTO assisted in the film’s production, but the … [Read More]

Jean Chung’s Seoul photos for Time magazine

Good Seoul photos, plus 10 things to do in 24 hours in Seoul, some recommendations for side trips, and more, on the TIME magazine website: http://bit.ly/Time-photos #. Photographer Jean Chung comes across the practice of couples fastening metal locks to a fence on Namsan Tower (above) as a symbol of their eternal love for each … [Read More]

Many ways to enjoy Korea

The language classes at the Korean Cultural Centre attract a really interesting spectrum of people, from English businessmen to Bae Yong-joon besotted Japanese housewives, via museum curators and people married to a Korean. In my own language classes, apart from the above, was Jo, a TVXQ-obsessed party animal, who was good enough to review their … [Read More]