Best of January

February is here! Here is some of the best Korea & Animation stuff from January:

Yup, that's poop. And in Korea, it's cute. Click here only if you dare to see more poop in cute form.

The Year of the Rat is near! February marks the Chinese New Year, which is a big holiday in Korea. Click here to see some rat cake advertisements which borrow heavily from animation. There is more about the Year of the Rat to come in February.

Boom Chiki Boom! is a good example of OSMU. Click here to learn more about OSMU and the Boom Chiki Boom! stage show. I will be writing about the Chinese expansion of Boom Chiki Boom! this month.

Thanks for reading and expect plenty more this month!

Subway Station Pixelation

Here's some subway station pixelation for you!

Seoul has amazing public transportation. The vast subway system alone is a marvel. If you spend enough time in Seoul, you'll learn that each subway station is unique. Many subway stations are enriched with art. Sometimes, the ever present tiles used in Korean subways are arranged to make pixelated imagery.

Here's a close up look at the first image. See how this cartoon tiger is made up of small colored square tiles? This results in a very 8-bit look, doesn't it? I think that's what makes it so appealing.

These images of Hodori, the 1988 Olympic Mascot for Seoul (I'll write more about him later), are taken from the Dongdaemun Stadium station.

This next series of images is from the Yeouido subway station:
These horses and sheep create a mural that beautifully decorate a wall.

The mural is so wide that I had to break it down into slices. The very next image is the farthest slice to the left. As you scroll down, imagine you are looking from left to right at this mural.

I can't seem to remember which subway station the next series of images are from. These ones show historical Korean scenes.This is a close up of the lantern in the above picture with the women.

And this is a close up of the candle.

There is tons more stuff like this in Seoul subways. I've even seen abstract patterns using rectangular tiles. Of course, these are much better looking in person. So, if you ever get the chance, you should check these out.