SARAH LOHMANN WRITES — K-pop has always been rife with experimentation—throughout music, styling, and choreography. With their debut mini album Assemble, the South Korean girl group TripleS brings a fresh, trendy, Y2K-inspired sound. Making their mark in a saturated and ever-evolving market, they implore listeners to be their authentic selves…
Full Article MUSIC REVIEW: HOW TRIPLES IS MAKING THEIR MARK ON K-POP
BOOK REVIEW EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ELLA KELLEHER WRITES — What if talking were like reaching into a vast abyss with no hope of a response? That’s how it is for South Korean author Han Kang’s mute protagonist in her latest English language release, Greek Lessons (2023). Kang’s novel, both riveting and entirely…
Full Article BOOK REVIEW: GREEK LESSONS (2023) BY HAN KANG — A MEDITATION ON SILENCE AND SELFHOOD
MICHELLE CHANG WRITES – When the clock strikes 5:00pm, people finish their last emails, close their computers, and head out after a long day at work. At least, that’s what is normally expected; but a recent proposal under review by South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol would mandate a maximum 69-hour…
Full Article SOUTH KOREA: ALL WORK AND NO PLAY?
SARAH LOHMANN WRITES — We often like to see the world in black-and-white terms: bad people do bad things. It is rarely so simple in reality, however. Japanese director, Hirokazu Koreeda, explores moral complexity in Broker (2022), showing how our best efforts and intentions can be disrupted by systems that…
Full Article MOVIE REVIEW: BROKER (2022) – THE SPIRAL OF HUMAN MORALITY
Guest Commentary by Moon Chung-in, professor emeritus at Yonsei University – After Republic of Korea President Yoon Suk-yeol broached the possibility of South Korea developing its own nuclear weapons in January, discussion of that possibility has been picking up intensity. According to the results of a poll of 1,000 people…
Full Article KOREAN PENINSULA CONTROVERSY: NO NUKES IN THE SOUTH, PLEASE!
SARAH LOHMANN WRITES – Romance and coming-of-age stories are comforting for many. Their familiar storylines are a space for viewers to revisit the excitements and struggles of youth with a healthy degree of separation, a safety cushion. For this reason, such films can risk being devoid of complexity. However, Korean…
Full Article MOVIE REVIEW: THE MANY COLORS OF YOUTH IN 20TH CENTURY GIRL (2022) – GROWING PAINS
WRITES MOON CHUNG-IN, chairman of the Sejong Institute -South Koreans were long forced to remain silent about the tragic Jeju April 3 Incident. Over 30,000 residents of Jeju Island were killed by the police, the military and paramilitary groups such as the Northwest Youth Association during the incident, which began…
Full Article SEOUL-WASHINGTON ALLIANCE: LET’S GET TRUTHFUL ABOUT THE JEJU APRIL 3 MASSACRE
SARAH LOHMANN WRITES — In this age of scrolling feeds and images, what are we, if not our faces, our best days posted, and our reputations on display for the world to see? The photos we take of our bodies make up the mask we show to the world, so…
Full Article MOVIE REVIEW: PHOTOCOPIER (2022) — SECRETS OF THE SELF AND SELF-IMAGE
BOOK REVIEW EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ELLA KELLEHER WRITES – In times of darkness, when all seems hopeless and lackluster, South Korean author Baek-Sehee’s mind often conjures up countless questions to inspire faith: What about the people that love you? What about the millions of possibilities where things can get better? And perhaps…
Full Article BOOK REVIEW: I WANT TO DIE BUT I WANT TO EAT TTEOKBOKKI (2022) BY BAEK SEHEE – ONE KOREAN WRITER’S HONEST DEPICTION OF MENTAL HEALTH
SARAH LOHMANN WRITES – “Does it hurt?” When we hear this question, it is often with an urgent or melancholic tone. Korean author Jungeun Hwang frames the question differently when it is asked of thirteen-year-old Nana by her childhood friend Naghi after he strikes her across the cheek. She confirms it does…
Full Article BOOK REVIEW: I’LL GO ON (2018) – DAY WILL BREAK BEFORE LONG
Aerial Concave Without Cloud – 113 pages – $16.95 – Nightboat Books, New York, NY ANGELINE KEK WRITES — Grief is a lonely process as much as it is all-encompassing. Like all pain, it takes away, gives back wisdom, and breaks people open. Aerial Concave Without Cloud (2022) by Sueyeun…
Full Article BOOK REVIEW: AERIAL CONCAVE WITHOUT CLOUD (2022) BY SUEYEUN JULIETTE LEE — STUDYING LIGHT AND GRIEF
BOOK REVIEW EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ELLA KELLEHER WRITES — South Korea, often referred to as the ‘plastic surgery capital of the world,’ is a place where it’s not only typical but expected for young women to have double eyelid surgery before they hit thirty. Jaw slimming, skin lasering, destructive dieting – these radical approaches…
Full Article BOOK REVIEW: IF I HAD YOUR FACE (2020) BY FRANCES CHA – BEAUTY AND WOMANHOOD IN SOUTH KOREA
Violets – The Feminist Press at CUNY – 222 pages — $22.03 BOOK REVIEW EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ELLA KELLEHER WRITES – “Violets, Violin, Violence, Violator,” chants the main character, San, as she reads from a dictionary. In just a few short lines, a beautiful purple flower morphs into “one who breaks rules,…
Full Article BOOK REVIEW: VIOLETS (2022) BY KYUNG-SOOK SHIN – A LONE SOUL IN SEOUL.
BRIANNA HIRAMI WRITES – Falling in love is already hard enough as it is without the constant fear of being outcasted for who you love. When your and your loved ones’ identity is not socially acceptable in society, it makes the thought of falling in love absolutely terrifying. One becomes incessantly…
Full Article BOOK REVIEW: LOVE IN THE BIG CITY (2021) BY SANG YOUNG PARK: LOVE AGAINST ALL ODDS
BRIANNA HIRAMI WRITES — Historians often skip over the pain that war leaves on the countless hearts of those who have lost their loved ones to senseless violence. Whether it is a soldier caught on the battlefield, a parent praying for their drafted child, or a refugee actively escaping a…
Full Article BOOK REVIEW: THE WAITING (2021) BY KEUM SUK GENDRY-KIM
MOON CHUNG-IN WRITES — Since South Korean President Moon Jae-in asked the international community to support formally declaring the end of the Korean War during his speech at the UN General Assembly on Sept. 21, the issue has been at the forefront of the government’s diplomatic efforts as Moon’s presidency…
Full Article KOREAN PENINSULA: RESPONDING TO SKEPTICISM ABOUT AN END-OF-WAR DECLARATION