We’re very excited to introduce our next book! What we learned about Korea’s symbolic animals while researching 100 Thimbles in a Box inspired us to feature them in a series of children’s stories we are calling the Ginkgo Tree Tales. Illustrated by the gifted Korean artist, Lee, Woong Ki, these are not retellings of traditional folktales,…
In December I had the great pleasure of visiting the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco (http://www.asianart.org) for a special exhibit of Korean clothing. Couture Korea (http://www.asianart.org/exhibitions/couture-korea) was curated by Han, Hyonjeong Kim, Associate Curator of Korean Art at the Museum in collaboration with the Arumjigi Culture Keepers Foundation in Korea (http://www.arumjigi.org/eng/introduce/intro.php). Running from November…
In early 2017, we wrote about a friend of ours, Youngmin Lee, who designs and creates stunning hand-sewn Korean textile art in her home in the San Francisco area (https://100thimbles.com/youngmin-lee-bojagi-artist/). In that article we mentioned a project that she was pursuing with visitors to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), where she was…
As someone who has had a love affair going on with South Korea for the past 32 years, when I recently heard President Moon Jae-in call this winter’s Olympic Games the “Peace Olympics,” one of my grandmother’s favorite expressions came to mind: “From your lips to God’s ears.” The image of his words floating skyward…
On February 9, Yuna Kim, Korea’s beloved 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist in Women’s figure skating ignited the Olympic Flame during the dramatic opening ceremonies of this year’s Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. It is fitting that a spokeswoman for Korea’s ever-increasing contemporary presence on the world stage should light a vessel that symbolizes Korea’s…
2018 is the Year of the Dog, one of my favorite zodiac animals. It’s certainly higher on my list than the snake or the rat (a small relative of which is currently having a grand old time behind my refrigerator in spite of my best attempts to convince him to move on.) According to the…
Soohorang and Bandabi, the mascots for the Olympic Winter Games and the Paralympic Winter Games, both to be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea starting this week and continuing through mid-March, are much more than loveable cartoon characters. With auspicious meaning and powers, the white tiger and the Asian black bear embody Korea’s long-standing reverence for…
In Korean art and culture, two different types of “monsters” are often seen—Nathwi Masks and Dokkaebi. Although the two types have very different meanings, they are both examples of an image that is unique to Korean folk art—the smiling beast. Probably going back to animist/Shaminist belief in a world of spirits that inhabit all…
During a recent visit to San Francisco, my daughter and I had the great pleasure of visiting the studio of Youngmin Lee (www.youngminlee.com), a skilled bojagi artist born and raised in Korea and now living in the U.S. Serene and soft-spoken, Youngmin spends up to four hours most days carefully stitching wrapping cloths, pouches,…
Several times a year Seoul’s palaces are open to visitors at night. Tickets sell out quickly, but it is worth the effort to try and see these beautifully lit buildings after dark. During the evening openings, visitors are entertained by traditional Korean music and dance performances — always a treat, but especially so with a…