The London-based daily Financial Times on Aug. 22 said Korean fashion, or "K-style," as featured in K-dramas and worn by K-pop artists is receiving global worldwide. (Screen capture from Times) 

By Yoon Sojung

The U.K.-based daily Financial Times on Aug. 22 said Korean fashion, or "K-style," has attracted global interest in following in the footsteps of K-dramas, K-pop and the Korean beauty sector.

Citing the sensation ignited by Psy's music video "Gangnam Style" in 2012 as "the moment when Korean pop culture stepped on the Western stage," the article titled "K-style — the rise and rise of Korean pop culture" said Hallyu's global influence has expanded enough that a K-pop group was invited to the White House to discuss anti-Asian hate crimes and Asian representation and serve as global ambassadors for luxury brands such as Dior and Louis Vuitton.

"Featuring heavily in K-dramas and worn by K-pop idols, Korean fashion hasn't been equally influential on a global scale, but Seoul has emerged as a buzzy, fashion-forward city," it added.

The Times quoted Holly Tenser, buying manager of the British brand Browns, as saying, "The street style always offers fresh inspiration that you might not necessarily find in other cities."

The article also introduced the exhibition "Hallyu! The Korean Wave," set to open on Sept. 24 at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, saying "Hallyu will be at the center of the first exhibition about Korea" to be held at the museum.

The exhibition "chronicles Korea's rapid industrialisation and economic growth in the 1960s and 1970s, before dedicating specific segments to K-dramas and films, K-pop, K-beauty and fashion," the daily added.

Fiona Bae, a Korean writer based in London and the author of "Make Break Remix: The Rise of K Style," was quoted as calling K-Style a "complex mix and contrast of the old and the new, western and eastern, high- and low-brow."

"It's the brave and bold attitude of young Koreans who have confidence to pick what's cool out there, remix it and call it theirs," she added.

"In a way, it is this same attitude that has created the global appeal of Hallyu," said the article.

"Combined with a government-backed desire to lift the country out of poverty and the fortuitous development of streaming platforms and social media, which have given a truly global platform to Korean culture, Hallyu has taken shape as a rare example of a soft power with the capacity of challenging American pop culture hegemony."

arete@korea.kr