This is the first volume in the Visual Korean Heritage series, “a collection of Korea’s traditional culture and arts, in particular pieces that display visual intensity or embody the Korean idea of beauty.” The goal of this series is to place the spotlight on the works of art themselves and provide brief explanations to aid the reader in better understanding the arts of Korea. “Court Paintings from the Joseon Dynasty” certainly achieves this goal, as the first thing the reader will notice upon opening up this beautifully printed book is the great number of pages devoted to reproducing the paintings. With the exception of the back matter, the book devotes four-fifths of its page space to showcasing 30 noteworthy court paintings.
A three-page introduction to the collection guides the reader into the world of Joseon court paintings, discussing their functions, genres, and motifs. This is the longest passage of text in the book, though; the 30 works covered are each accompanied by brief explanations. Each painting is allowed several pages, with one or two pages for the full version and at least one more page for details that have been enlarged to occupy the entire page.

The treatment of the first painting — fittingly a portrait of King Taejo, founder of the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910) — is characteristic of the book as a whole. On the left is the full portrait of the king, known to anyone who is even passingly familiar with Joseon paintings. The right page has three paragraphs that discuss the history, style, and artistic and cultural elements of the painting. Turn the page, though, and we are met with a close-up of Taejo’sface. Clearly visible are the wrinkles and creases around his eyes, the individual strands of hair in his mustache and beard, and even a wart on his forehead (a feature this reviewer never knew existed, having only ever seen the painting from a distance or on a smaller scale). On the right is an enlargement of the lower left corner of the painting, bleeding to the very edge of the page, which reveals the exquisite detail painted into the dragons on the king’s throne. Each painting is afforded the same care and attention, and some even more — two pages (65 and 97) fold out, allowing for detailed presentation of four very wide paintings that would otherwise not have been possible in book format.
The text, while kept to a minimum, is knowledgeable and informative. If there is any quibble with the book, though, it would be here. The text is by and large mechanically correct, but it is unfortunately marred by the occasional awkward turn of phrase or word choice.

These blemishes are not so glaring as to impede understanding, and it does seem somewhat petty to mention such fault, but the blemishes were all the more noticeable when juxtaposed with the beautifully rendered paintings.
The quibble aside, this is a beautiful book that achieves what it sets out to do. While other art books may shoehorn smaller versions of paintings into pages of text, or at best set aside a page or two for a full painting, this book understands that the star of the show is the art. If this is representative of the series as a whole, then Visual Korean Heritage will become a collection that any lover of Korean art will want on their shelves.

What this book is not is an indexed guidebook to Korea or a coffee table book with stunning photos.
“My Korea: Musings with a Camera and Pen” is exactly what the title says it is: a collection of personal observations and opinions and photographs of places the author has visited. Baek Seung-woo has worked in the hotel industry for 30 years as a finance officer, during which time he became acquainted with what foreigners — travelers and residents alike — find curious about life in Korea.
While the author concedes that he is not a professional writer, it has not deterred him from publishing books. His first effort, a photo essay book in Korean titled “Way to Work, Yaksudong Street” was published in 2013. This latest book is in English, which is not his native language.
In the book’s preface, Baek explains how the project got started: as Facebook postings, in English, on Korean customs with foreign readers in mind. The book is a collection of those postings with a wide selection of photographs taken by the author, both in color and black-and-white.
The book begins with an entry dated September 21, 2015, “The Historical Name of Korea.” Baek explains the origin of “Korea,” how it is an eponym derived from the Goryeo period (918–1392). Exploring the various names of the country in the modern period seems a fitting start to a book that purports to explain the country.

Presented in a reverse chronological order, the entry on the last page, dated August 13, 2013, is a single paragraph on business lunches in Korea. Here the author recommends naengmyeon (cold noodles), vegetable dishes, and samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup).
This curious arrangement explains why the entries become shorter and the language grows less fluid, even awkward. Indeed, this book is proof that regular journaling is a surefire way to improve one’s writing. It is easy to appreciate the progress the author made in the two years that he dedicated to this undertaking. The book could have benefited from tighter editing and more meticulous proofreading, but it still engages the reader in an intimate way. If you get past the strangeness of some of the sentence structures, the book can be enjoyed anyway you want. It can serve as a personal guide on a journey to discover Korea’s culture, people, customs, and everyday life.
The book does not have to be read front to back as it is not arranged thematically. Opening a random page and discovering something unexpected might just be the best way to appreciate it.

The English-language website of the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage includes a database of some 150,000 Korean cultural properties, both in and outside the country, making the site an indispensable resource for those studying Korea.
The website is presented in a succinct manner, with well-written text and attractive visuals. It is also user-friendly with clear, simple organization, making it easy to navigate. Even a layperson who seeks to access information on Korea’s rich cultural heritage, including natural heritage, will find the website informative and educational.
For researchers, the most useful feature of the website may be the searchable “Database” section where the various reports published by the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage are available. This section also contains video and audio files and slides, as well as “Journal of Korean Archaeology.”
English-language abstracts of reports issued in Korean by the institute are available, some in PDF format. As this is an Englishlanguage website, a more prominent display of the section on cultural properties located outside Korea would have been appreciated, however.

It is regrettable that, as is often the case with foreign language websites of Korean organizations, some sections have not been updated. For example, the most recent international seminar listed is from 2012, though the seminars are held annually. It should also be noted that at the time of writing, the Cultural Heritage Knowledge Portal could not be accessed through the “shortcut” provided on the website.
Although with similar problems and room for improvement, the institute also operates Chinese- and Japaneselanguage websites.