Tag: interview

Sports and Activities

Maruna Jiu-Jitsu: Interview with Coach You Taebin

Gwangju News

While BJJ is believed to have originated in 1925 in Japan, it was not until 1999 that it was first brought to Korea by John Frankl, a professor at Seoul’s Yonsei University, who came from the United States as a researcher and brown belt at the time. Nevertheless, it seems it has been just around the last decade that BJJ has been gaining real popularity in Korea, with more opportunities for both locals and foreign visitors to practice the martial art. Our Gwangju News team had the pleasure to talk to the owner and main coach of one of the recently opened gyms in Gwangju, Maruna Jiu-Jitsu.

People in the Arts

Singing of the Abode of the Wind – Artist Kim Kyung-joo

Gwangju News

In this installment of People in the Arts, we meet artist Kim Kyung-joo, who founded the Gwangju-Jeonnam Art Community and was a participant in the minjung art movement with woodblock prints and ink paintings. What follows is the interview that I recently had with Mr. Kim.

Profile

Windmills, Tulips, and Kimchi: A Dutch intelligence researcher studies Alzheimer’s disease in Gwangju

Gwangju News

Alzheimer’s is a nasty brain disease. The nerves in the brain are slowly rotting away until they die. It becomes increasingly difficult for the brain cells to communicate with each other, so the processing of information by the brain slows down dramatically. This means the scores on IQ tests get lower and lower, and even the simplest tasks previously become too difficult.

People in the Arts

Chronicling the Pain of the Times: Artist Heo Dal-yong

Gwangju News

Heo Dal-yong was born into the Heo family, which was continuing the line of the painting referred to as namhwa (남화). Namhwa is a style of painting that originated in China. It is also called “literary painting” because this style was mainly painted by Confucian scholars rather than by professional artists.

People in the Arts

Stepping into the Paintings of Artist Lim Nam-jin

Gwangju News

Lim Nam-jin is a painter who gives us subject matter to ponder, and her paintings give us a space to step into.

Profile

Painter of “The Wind Flows Among the People”: Yoon Nam-woong

Gwangju News

The place where I first met Yoon Nam-woong’s artworks was at Daein Market in downtown Gwangju. When the old market, where I used to go grocery shopping with my mom as a child, was gradually emptying out because of the newly emerging shopping malls, young artists came into the vacated shopping areas and created their own work spaces. One by one, small, unique galleries were created like nothing I had seen before, and people began to visit Daein Market to see their artworks. I remember that “The Arts Market” was opened every weekend and that my family also went to Daein Market to enjoy the various artistic works as well as the fresh foods.

Profile

City of Lights, Camera, Action: Filmmaker Attila Korosi in Gwangju

Gwangju News

Attila Korosi was born in Yugoslavia and is the director, writer, and producer of the feature film Maze of Fate. Maze of Fate is a crime drama, filmed in one of America’s most dangerous neighborhoods. The film is expected to be released in the first quarter of 2023, and Mr. Korosi is currently working on his new projects while based in Gwangju. Upon coming to Korea, he created a short documentary about the May 18 Democratization Movement and received a special award for it. Despite his busy schedule, Mr. Korosi took the time to meet our team in person and shared his interesting story.

Language Teaching

Special Interest Groups for English Teachers: Interview with Reece Randall

Gwangju News

There is a new guy in town, though he is not new to Korea or to Korea TESOL. Taking up a new position at the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) is Reece Randall. He is also the new second vice-president of KOTESOL, and one of his roles in that position is to oversee the organization’s special interest groups (SIGs). In this interview for the Gwangju News, we ask Reece, among other things, to explain what SIGs are and how they work.