Girlhood Frolicks ~ Fashion Shoot ~ Part Two

Part 2 of the Summer fashion shoot from Gyahaha's summer clothing line designed by the brilliant clothing designer Hyeon-ja of Gyahaha and help from business partner Hyunmi. Doesn't this just make you want to go on summer picnics, play dress-up, run barefoot, and eat so much watermelon that it dribbles down your chin and makes your hands impossibly sticky from the fruity goodness, or is that just me? 

Summer's Anticipation! ~ Fashion Shoot ~ Part One

Do you remember a couple of months back or rather almost 11 months ago?  In April 2011, I had a 5-month challenge for myself ?Remember challenges two and three?2) Collaborate with another artist (fashion designer, make-up artist, etc.) on a Photography Shoot3) Do a Fashion Shoot in SeoulSo I didn't quite do a fashion shoot in Seoul, but rather in the most beautiful countryside of Gangwon-do in East Korea! Which was about a million times better than photographing in Seoul. And I got to do some serious collaboration too!I paired with the brilliant clothing designer Hyeon-ja of Gyahaha and business partner Hyunmi for a crazy Saturday of pretty clothes, 3 am wake up calls, lots of hard work and the most tasty beef barbeque in all of Korea. We didn't finish until the next day at 6 am! It was worth the sleeplessness. We produced this shoot for their summer clothing line which is absolutely stunning! I am finally posting Part 1 for the internet world to see. Part 2 to come! :) If you're in Seoul, be sure to visit Gyahaha near Ewha and Hongdae University! It's a girl's clothes Heaven!In honor of warm weather and good melodies, take a gander at my new favorite song from Avalanche City ~ Love, Love, Love .. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWzzbuJJYQc&feature=BFa&list=PL7F6FD55BE8CCC5A5&lf=results_main   

Let's talk about my Korean Angels...Finally!

So I've been saying for ages that I will let you see my little orphan angels who I love so dearly. Well finally! I'm sharing! Remember a few months back, in April, I had a 5-month challenge for myself to submit my work to a magazine and do a portrait series on my little orphan boys (challenges number 1 and 6)? Well I did it! and I submitting this piece to 3 or 4 different magazines. And for political and editorial conflict reasons it was rejected by a couple of different Korea magazines, but I kept trying AND my favorite of the 4 magazines published it! So this is my first official spread in a print magazine. Yay!And a much bigger WOOT! WOOT! to my little angels who put so much joy into my time in Korea! You are surely missed.I did this portrait story on my ancient film Yashica Mat TLR Camera. Which was a fun challenge :) Here is how the story ran in NEH magazine's Aug/Sept Issue. And to read the more legible, full story look below the pictures :)

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An Unlikely Family

By Inge Kathleen 

Tucked in the Korean hillside, two hours east from the madness of central Seoul lies a small bustling village of sorts called Shinmang where a family of more than 40 young boys and girls live.This family looks nothing like your traditional Korean family, quite the opposite. Their ages range vastly from just a month old to 17 years of age; they all have unique stories, personalities and aspirations, yet the thread that ties them together is that they have all been orphaned or abandoned.Shinmang Orphanage has been in operation for almost 60 years, since 1952. It has slowly grown to house more than 30 boys, 10 girls, and an assortment of bushy dogs. Shinmang is a place where these children can grow up with a loving family until they reach 18 years old and then they will become independent.Most of these “orphans” still have one or both of their parents alive and almost all have closely related family, but most will likely never return to their families nor be adopted.The children come to Shinmang for a variety of reasons. A few have no parents, others have parents who are mentally or financially unable to provide for them, others have been abused or abandoned or others have single parents who have given them up because of pressures from their family or a future spouse. This pressure is rooted in Koreans’ Confucianist beliefs of bloodline. The blood is an important link between a parent and a child. It is so valued that new spouses do not want a child that does not have their own blood. Furthermore, the idea of adopting a child, a completely unknown one is that much more foreign to many Koreans. This is why adoption is so rare here.“They [Koreans] don’t want a kid from another bloodline,” says Myung Hee Park, the director of the Shinmang Orphanage.When Koreans chose to adopt, however, they usually do so without their friends or family knowing. One way they hide it is by faking a pregnancy and then adopting an infant.Since the 1950s, more than 200,000 Korean children have been adopted with more than 160,000 of these children going to international homes.However, most of the children at Shinmang are much too old to be adopted. According to the U.S. State Department, 86% of children adopted in Korea are under the age of one. Additionally, the parental rights for most of the Shinmang children rest with their families, even in cases when they are abandoned.I began visiting Shinmang Orphanage about a year and a half ago. I found it with the help of my Korean friend. The orphanage is just a subway stop and a 25 minute walk away from the little country school that I teach at.I remember the first time I went. It was a frigid winter day, and the director, Myung Hee Park, came to pick me up at the train station. I got in her car, and almost immediately we turned off the main road in favor of a back road that took us by little farms, worn hanok houses, and frost-kissed rice fields. We then wound up a narrow road and arrived at Shinmangan orphanage that at this time was only for boys.I was there not to teach English. I was there to do nothing but play with them. I was a little nervous about what I would do with them; my Korean language level was barely higher than survival. However, I figured despite this language barrier, I was a child from a family of nine kids, and I would improvise, somehow.Park toured me around the house and then led me to a room with a few little boys inside. She said that I could hang out with them for a few minutes while she finished up some office work. The boys were all gathered around the television enthralled with a Disney cartoon. I went and sat with them for a moment and tried to impress them with my Korean, but they just looked at me like I was a white ogre. Fair enough, I thought, apparently my language skills weren’t the way to their little hearts. I instead managed to bribe one of the smallest ones away from Mr. Walt Disney with crayons and white paper.With crayons and paper at our disposal, we sprawled on the yellow laminate floor, laying flat on our bellies. We began drawing anything and everything we could think of. I would draw a bunny and then he would draw the same one. He would draw a flower, and I would color it in. Then I drew a tree, but apparently it wasn’t up to his standards, so he dramatically scratched it out and then giggled mischievously. Before we knew it, time had flown by, and it was time for dinner.He motioned with his hands that it was time to eat. We guarded our masterpieces in his closet, and then he grabbed my hand tightly and led me up the stairs to the little dining hall. He then told me with grand authority where I was to sit. I must sit right next to him! My heart just melted right to the floor.From that moment forward, he and all his siblings have had my heart. On this day orphans became real to me. These little ones were not from Oliver Twist or the Little Princess. When I left them that evening, the movie didn’t end. They didn’t get to go home and be tucked in bed by their mother or father. They weren’t going to get chicken noodle soup when they had were sick or play catch with their dads. It wasn’t their fault either. There was nothing wrong with these children, they had brilliant personalities, and beautiful hearts, but that didn’t matter.Since that winter day, I’ve gone to visit their ever-growing family almost weekly. We’ve drawn quite a few more masterpieces; they’ve made me the official piggyback ride giver, human horse, tickle monster, and I am even required to give unlimited airplane rides for a nominal fee of 뽀뽀 (kisses) and hugs.After two years in Korea, I only have a few days left until I leave for Thailand to travel and to work with Burmese refugees. It will be sad to say farewell to my friends and all the delicious Korean food that I love so dearly, but I have Skype and a kitchen. These losses can be remedied.My greatest sadness is knowing that gone are the days of walking up the hill toward their house and hearing them scream at the top of their lungs ‘Inge wasayo!’ (Inge has arrived!) Or having them hug me tightly and then spending the evening spinning round and round until we all fall to the floor from blissful dizziness and then doing it all over again!If only I could take a couple of them with me, I pray, maybe one day soon.Shinmang Orphanage is located in Gyeonggido Province in Shinwon-ri between Yangsu-ri and Yangpyeong. For more information about how you can help go to http://www.shinmang.or.kr/ or contact director Myung Hee Park at 031-772-6244, email at shinmang1952@hanmail.net and their address is 경기 양평군 양서면 신원리 산 53번지published in NEH Magazine South Korea

Whispers of the Past ~ #9

I've always thought with my hair that I should have grown up in the 18th Century or during the 1980s, but unfortunately my parents missed the 18th century by a long shot. Lame guys! and then I only lasted for 2 years and 2 months in the 80s, equally lame. Though my 2 year old bedhead hair was fabulous, it just wasn't to the maturity of my current wig.  So since my birth didn't come in either of those time periods, now I am stuck with recreating what could have been. Me, as one of Jane Austen's Characters. I would have been awesome!. Though I may not have been as cool as Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice, I would have been close. ;) hehehe Happy Tuesday, ya'll. And check out Mandolyn's Amazingness this week. ^^Clothes by: Gyahaha Clothing Store, Seoul, South Korea.

The Self-Portrait Madness Escalates! #5

Wow! Is all I have to say. Wow!

This is only portrait #5 and I can't believe how many things have started to come my way since my friend Mandolyn and I have started this challenge. Let me explain, or try to. This story may be a wee bit difficult to understand, and long! I had trouble believing myself, but bear with me if you have the energy or brew some coffee! Brew it extra strong with some delicious milk to obtain the maximum focus ;)I had probably the craziest, most unexpected Saturday in quite some time. Like I said last week, I had no clue where my next self-portrait would come from, but then it just fell into my lap! So you see remember that fear challenge list I made? The one about the different things I wanted to do before saying goodbye to Korealand? Yes that one! Well on that list I wrote that I wanted to do a fashion shoot and collaborate on the photography shoot with another artist (fashion designer, make-up artist, etc).This past weekend that goal was accomplished! After I made the list, I decided to go meet and to talk to the owner of my absolutely favorite clothing store in all of Korealand in Hongdae called Gyahaha . I wanted to how she felt about  collaborating on a fashion shoot together.This store is amazing! It is full of beautiful colorful clothes, designed or bought by the owner Yeon Ja. She travels all over the world selecting clothes, fabrics and Jewelry for Gyahaha (Ladies in Korea let me know if you need directions because they carry some Western sizes and jewelry) .So about 3 or 4 weeks ago we met, Yeon Ja, Hyun Mi, and myself, had a lovely chat and decided that we wanted to work together! They told me that it was actually the perfect timing for a shoot because Gyahaha is about to launch their new summer line and they were looking for a photographer to do a fashion shoot, and I walk in their door. I like their style of clothes and they liked my style of photography. Ah-sah! I just love when the stars align!So we planned for a photo shoot for this past weekend and then we all started planning the shoot's concepts and looking for models, foreign and Korean. All was going well, and I couldn't be more happy to work with them.., but on Tuesday this tale took an unexpected twist. I get an email from Hyun Mi last Tuesday discussing the logistics of the weekend, our concepts, the timing, the models, and then she casually mentions that ever since they met me that they though I would be perfect to model their clothes. And they hoped that I would be one of the models for the shoot... Ha? What?!? ::at this point in the email, I spit out 1/2 of my morning juice dousing my computer my desk with orange juice while I simultaneously choked on the other 1/2 of my juice and it went down all sorts of wrong pipes that I didn't even know I had. It was a mess:: But you see, ladies that... I'm the photographer.. yes?? uhhh.. how? mmm. errr.  And then the idea came to me. Like a light from Heaven, the voice of God most probably.  ;)  You know what?!? You can do this. I've been doing self-portraits for the past month, why not? Weird, but doable.. So I pitched this idea to them, and they agreed! Wow.. Crazy right? Model and Photographer for a fashion shoot. Really, is that even possible? But wait there is more craziness to ensue, yes I know, how? You will believe it when you see it!So Saturday day morning the Gyahaha team, and I set out in the wee hours of the morning about 3am to go to a piece of farmland about 3 hours east from here, but not before grabbing some delicious Soon Dubu to fill our bellies. Off we went in search of perfect farmland. It took more time then expect, and people kept telling us that we couldn't take pictures here or there, but then we finally found a beautiful location free from all those pesky rule-following people. And so the shoot began. And yes I did model and photograph, I must say it was an experience switching from photographer to model and then back again. It's a little rough having to try to switch from model face to creative brain and then back again, but a good challenge. I would set up the tripod, arranged the scene, then the ever so lovely Hyun Mi would click the shutter for me or tell me when my face looked dumb. She was an amazing help! So I guess these may not be a purest of self portraits but.... It was pretty close :) Here's one of the semi-self portraits from Saturday...Well we shot all day! But the weather was amazing, and we an awesome time! About 4pm we packed up all the clothes and props and headed home, well almost, we first decided that all of our hard work deserved good food so we ate. I just love how Koreans never let you go hungry. They are my kind of people.After filling our tummies with Korean BBQ and marinated raw beef&pears, yum!, we had to rush back to Seoul because they had another in fashion shoot in the studio at 7pm. As soon as we jumped into the van, we all passed out from exhaustion. It was about 6pm.,  and we were on the way to my house, and the studio called Yeon Ja, by the tone of conversation, I knew something was wrong. I heard my name spoken in the conversation a few times, but everything was in Korean. I could only pick up a few words. She gets off the phone and then there was just silence in the car for about 10 minutes..No translation was provided. hmmmm... now I was curious.  What was going on?So being the noisy, annoying American that I am, I started to poke about the studio shoot, and I asked if I could go and watch it.. Then Hyun Mi tells that was the studio on the phone, their model was very sick, and that the studio stylist saw my self-portraits and asked Yeon Ja if I would be interested in modeling for the shoot?. ::at this point if I had had been drinking any sort of liquid, i would have spewed it all of over the car and its inhabitants:: hahaha! Really? Are you serious? Not twice in a day when I've never modeled a day in my life. You guys must be super confused.. I'm supposed to be on the OTHER side of the camera.. you know the PHOTOGRAPHER!, remember?But Yeon Ja hadn't mentioned it to me because she knew I had already worked all day and thought I was probably exhausted, and this would be asking too much. After thinking about it for hmm... 5 sec I decided the sure, I was tired, but how could I pass up the opportunity? I mean I had already wanted to go to the studio to watch the madness and now I could join it! Ah-sah! I wonder what they would make me do?.. hmmm...Come to find out, they didn't make me do much, but they sure did a whole lot to me.. A few times they had to give me electric shock therap so that I didn't fall asleep on them, and by the look of my hair you can tell. It looked like I stuck my finger in the socket. Look at the pictures! It was sheer madness. So much so that the shoot lasted for about 9 hours. I got home at 6 the next morning.The Photographer Kim Suk Jun, Hair & Make-up by Ji Hye, and the set stylist who was super cool with such a personality, name: Hyun Na! And thanks to Hyun Mi and Yeon Ja for keeping me company and feeding me kimbap and juice so I wouldn't fall asleep in drool all over their pretty clothes ^^Such a crazy Saturday, and I know the lunacy will continue. I can't wait! I am a truly blessed  :)

The City of Ants

I did a little Seoul excursion this past Saturday, and I was greeted by one of the most beautiful places I've yet to know in Korea. This is officially my new favorite place in Seoul. It's called Gaemi Mauel, directly translated as the Ant City because it is a little town set on a hill. I probably love it so much because it feels nothing at all like the big, gray city of Seoul. It is full of color, hidden in the hills from the madness that Seoul is so well known for. I met some high school girls on my way down who escaped the city life and their nasty high school exams to take a day's vacation. We chatted about how much we disliked exams and how much we loved, loved, loved all kinds of food! It was such a lovely Saturday.The sun was setting, and it was threatening to rain, so I didn't get to explore all the nooks and crannies, but perhaps next weekend? I am itching to do a portrait session there. It would be amazing! 

So long Kimchi, Hello Sauerkraut!

Meet the Harbert family. They have been living in South Korea for almost 2 years, and they've loved it, but they are currently packing their bags and saying goodbye to Korealand and their favorite food, a Mr. Kimchi (hahaha). I lie, them and Mr. Kimchi are well, you see, they just haven't found the beauty in all the garlic and months of fermentation. I don't understand personally, what is not to love about a food that is full of rotten garlic? I mean, it makes your breath rancid for days. It's fantastic! ;) They much prefer Guacamole, which you all know, the Mexican in me applauds.But before they said goodbye to our little country of bitter winters and fermentation and head off to their next adventure, they asked me capture a bit of their family in Asialand. I am so happy they did. It was a perfectly sunny day, and it didn't feel like work at all, much more like I was hanging out with friends and taking pictures of their cool kids., who happen to like mohawks, skateboards, Ben - 10 and tutus! A photographer's dream! (yes, I admit, I did a little happy dance when I heard that Noah had a mohawk) Thank-you guys for the opportunity to photograph your family and best of luck on your next adventure! May it be full of many blessings.view my portfolio here 

100th post... Ni-Suh!

It only took me foooorever and year to get here, but woot, woot to being 100 posts-old! You can send your congratulatory presents to my personal assistant in Asialand, a Mr. Lee. He's super cool, he lives on all things rice, and he hates, hates, hates, fruit and chocolate. He eats all my rice gifts and gives me any fruit or chocolate that comes his way. It's a perfect working relationship. If only he had an avocado tree, I might marry him.Well in all my excitement of being 100, I decided this was a perfect opportunity to cook a feast for myself (but who do I kid? Like I really need an excuse to eat). The celebratory menu?Spring Banchan, Spicy Mackerel Stew, Spicy Squid Muchim, and Candied Lotus Root! Spectacular. Breathtaking. Marvelous. Excellent.. So, So Awesome. Euphoric!. Ok. you have the permission to punch me now, but punch the left eye please, because the right one already has a nice bruise that came from my last annoying blog post. And it would just make my face look so much more level, if I had 2 black eyes instead of one. I really look like the dog from the little Rascals today. It is just not a very attractive look for me. I much prefer the raccoon-look. More chic., stylish., and you know, I am very chic. ;)But back to cooking. Well, I've been knocking out so many of these recipes that I'll be done with my Korean Cooking List in no time. Or more likely, I'll just get hungry and then I'll have to extend my list longer and longer.. oh darn!Here are the recipes and I have again modified some of them, and taken them from delicious to uber delicious land :) Yes, humility is not my strongest of suits.The Spring Banchan, Candied Lotus and the Squid Muchim (O jingo Chae Mu Chim) were not very modified. I have just a little extra garlic here and there, but the bigger heresy came from the recreation of the Spicy Mackerel Stew the recipe's below.Spicy Mackerel Stew ~ the original with my modifications is below... My modification? I've added chopped pumpkin and carrots along with the radish and I put 4x the amount of fresh ginger and put extra garlic. Next time I'll add  mushrooms to the mix to see what happens!

1 can (14 oz) Mackerel, strained and the juice reserved
1/2 lb Korean radish, diced into 1/4" thick slices
1/4 lb pumpkin
1/2 large carrot
1/2 onion, sliced
2 garlic clove, chopped
2 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
2 tsp Korean soy sauce
1-2 TBS minced fresh ginger
1 tsp Korean chili flakes
1 Tbsp Korean chili paste (gochu jang)
1 Tbsp rice wine or Mirim
1tsp honey
8-10 cabbage leaves for wrapping, optional
Put radish, pumpkin, carrots and onion slices in the shallow pan, and place mackerels on top.
In a small bowl, combine the reserved canned mackerel juice with garlic, soy sauces, ginger, rice wine, and chili flakes. Sprinkle the sauce all over the mackerels in the pan.
Bring them to boil and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 10 minutes, covered, until the radish gets tender. Serve hot with rice and steamed cabbage leaves.
For the cabbage, Tear some leaves from the cabbage and cook them in the boiling water with some salt for 3-4 minutes until they get soft. Drain and rinse. Use these leaves to wrap around the mackerel, radish, and some rice.

Happy Cooking Everyone! And yeah for my 100th birthday! I look pretty good for 100, eh? That's what cheap plastic surgery does for you! and you wondered why I've stayed in Korea for so long? The surgeries, of course. They're cheap and fast!Oh and for those of you curious here is how the list is shaping up :) √'s mean I've successfully cooked it1) Kimchi (√cucumber, √cabbage, and spinach)2) √ KongNamul Banchan (Bean Sprout stir fry)3) √ Yuk Gae Jang ( Spicy Beef Stew) Probably my new favorite soup!4) Kamja Tang (Pork Back and Potato Stew)5) Dak Dori Tang (Spicy Chicken Stew)6) √ Kimchi Jjigae (Kimchi Stew)7) √ Seaweed Salad8) √ Sauteed Sea plant 9) Soondubu Jjigae (Spicy Soft Tofu Stew)10) √ O jing chae muchim (Seasoned dried Squid) So delicious you don't even know!11) √ Pan-fried Tofu12)√ Spicy Mackerel Stew13) JangJoRim (장조림)14)√ Spring BanchanLet the cooking continue!view my portfolio here

Famous in Seoul

Sunday afternoon in the middle of the Yeouido Cherry Blossom Festival a mass of Koreans began to form, mouths were gaping, hundreds of cellphones were out, all busily snapping pictures, and they weren't looking at beautiful cherry blossoms.. Oh no, they cared nothing for the millions of flower-filled trees, they were more enthralled with the massive blue eyes of all the Taylor children. You would have thought that the Olsen twins had arrived or perhaps Hannah Montana had just come on stage... All the grandmothers wanted their pictures taken with the beautiful waygooks (foreigners) and the grandfathers wanted to shake their hands. And the funny thing is that all this madness is just a normal Korean day for the Taylors. Korean made celebrities. :)Want your Korean life documented? contact me @ ingekathleen@gmail.com view my portfolio here

French Toast and Funny Faces

Sunday Morning, just as we were getting ready to eat massive amounts of French Toast at BUTTERFINGERS, the best breakfast place in all of Seoul, Seo Yeon marched up to us, a group of 6 very funny, very strange foreigners, and decided to join us for an hour long chat about life., Well actually, all she really wanted to do was laugh at us and our funny faces. :) I can't blame her because our faces are ..eh...Well. there IS a reason, I don't put my face up on this blog very often. I'm protecting the little ones. You should thank me and send gifts to show your appreciation. *Don't worry, the gifts don't need to be in the form of money, just fruit. I have a gift registry at fruitisamazing.com ~ I'm not picky, Pineapples, Pears, Mangos, let your imagination run wild! :)view my portfolio here 

Three Cheers for Fermentation!

This past week I moved one giant step closer to becoming Korean! No, I didn't dye my hair black, and I haven't suddenly become good at math. It is much more serious than that! I am both proud and ashamed to say I am have made Kimchi all by myself. Kimchi for those of you that don't know, is Korea's miracle food. Akin to Manna from Heaven, butter on bread, hot fudge on cake, but in a very healthy, garlic breath sort of way.They (the Koreans) say it (kimchi) will cure any aliment from a cold to the worst of cancers. This is perhaps why Korean hikers pack in pounds of kimchi from Korea when they go on treks up the Himalayan Mountains? You know just in case one of your limbs falls of due to frostbite or the werewolves, you can always rub some kimchi on it, then you'll be fine! This stuff will regenerate limbs! Incredible. Watch out doctors, you'll be out of business once the Kimchi mania spreads to the West!Every Korean meal by law.. er practically... must, I repeat MUST have kimchi.. So what IS this 'kimchi'? Well simply put, it is a mixture of Garlic, Chile Powder, Onions, Soy Sauce all smash together and then slathered onto a poor unsuspecting head of Napa Cabbage. The cabbage is then promptly thrown into airtight Tupperware, refrigerated for weeks or months on end in order to properly ferment and sour. The more fermented it is, the better chance of re-growing limbs and having 10/14 vision.. Errr.... on second thought due to the massive amounts of bi-focals I see in Korea, kimchi must not help the eyes. You think maybe they should consider fermenting carrots instead?p.s. If you're up for the Fermentation challenge here is the recipe --->http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/kimchi-kaktugi it's so easy and delicious, in a special fermented kind of way.