Greek police recover ancient statue from goat pen

ATHENS, Greece (AP) ― Greek police recovered an ancient statue that was illegally excavated and hidden in a goat pen near Athens, and arrested the goat herder and another man who were allegedly trying to sell the work for 500,000 euro ($667,000).The marble statue of a young woman dates to about B.C. 520 and belongs to the kore type, a police statement said Wednesday. Police photos showed the 1.2-meter work to be largely intact, lacking the left forearm and plinth.Although dozens of examples of t

March 29, 2012

Boy bands are back and doing big business

Many are products of industry masterminds looking to capitalize on juvenilesLOS ANGELES ― Hundreds of glow sticks luminesced over the sold-out crowd at Gibson Amphitheatre on a recent Friday night. Prepubescent girls snapped cellphone pictures and out-screamed one another as younger kids were hoisted onto parents’ shoulders for better views.The cheers morphed into hysteria as Big Time Rush emerged.The scene onstage is familiar: five seemingly interchangeable young guys linked by one band name an

March 29, 2012

Aerosmith promises new album in 3 months

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Aerosmith has reunited with longtime producer Jack Douglas and the band says it will release a new album in three months.Steven Tyler said Aerosmith was finishing two final songs for the album, its first since 2004’s “Honkin’ on Bobo.’’ Joined Wednesday by Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton and Joey Kramer at a Los Angeles mall, Tyler revealed three track titles: “Legendary Child,’’ “Beautiful’’ and “Out Go the Lights.’’ Earlier in the week, the band announced that its 18-stop “Global Wa

March 29, 2012

Photo albums related to Nazi art theft unveiled

DALLAS (AP) ― Among the items U.S. soldiers seized from Adolf Hitler’s Bavarian Alps hideaway in the closing days of World War II were albums meticulously documenting an often forgotten Nazi crime ― the massive pillaging of artwork and other cultural items as German troops marched through Europe.Two of those albums ― one filled with photographs of works of art, the other with snapshots of furniture ― were donated Tuesday to the U.S. National Archives, which now has custody of 43 albums in a set

March 28, 2012

Exhibition dedicated to humble folk song

Historical documents, music records show cultural legacy of popular folk songWidely known and sung, “Arirang” is very often considered the unofficial national anthem of Korea. Yet many aren’t aware that King Gojong, the last king of Joseon, and his wife, Queen Myeongseong, enjoyed listening to the song late at night, that it was made into Korea’s first opera, and that it even inspired American jazz musician Oscar Pettiford to write a piece of his own.Starting April 4, the National Folk Museum of

March 28, 2012

Madangpan attracts foreign visitors

A crowd of some 200 Koreans and foreigners gathered outside in Insa-dong on Tuesday afternoon to watch a traditional Korean performance.The event, organized by the Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation, featured a combination of the Bongsan Mask Dance Drama, a social satire performed by players in masks who dance and sing, and a traditional wedding ceremony. During the performance, the players bantered with the spectators, sometimes exchanging jokes, all in the spirit of “madangpan,” which involves

March 27, 2012

Pianist Kim to explore Beethoven’s music, life

25-year-old musical prodigy says he feels warmth, compassion in Beethoven’s 32 sonatasPianist Kim Sun-wook, a leading young Korean musician, returns to his fans with a two-year-long project on Ludwig van Beethoven’s complete 32 piano sonatas, offering a performance that has become more mature and profound. The 25-year-old pianist will perform all of Beethoven’s 32 sonatas, considered some of the greatest compositions for the piano, over a two-year period in eight concerts starting Thursday at LG

March 27, 2012

Tests show aging of Leonardo masterpiece

WARSAW, Poland (AP) ― Bark beetles and old age have damaged Leonardo da Vinci’s 15th-century painting “Lady with an Ermine,’’ but the masterpiece is still holding up well, according to a conservationist at the Polish museum where it is displayed.Recent tests show the chestnut board on which Leonardo painted his masterpiece has weakened after being nibbled at by beetles over the centuries, and the painting has also suffered from a dense network of cracks, said Janusz Czop, the chief conservationi

March 27, 2012

First lady hosts dinner for leaders’ spouses

Korea’s First Lady Kim Yoon-ok on Monday hosted a dinner for 14 spouses of the global leaders attending the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit.  The spouses, who are accompanying state leaders and heads of international organizations attending the two-day global conference in Seoul, enjoyed a special banquet at the National Museum of Korea while their partners attended a separate summit business banquet at COEX, southern Seoul. Antonioli Monti, wife of Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, Patienc

March 26, 2012

Artist aims for made-in-Korea luxury craft brand

Kim Kyung-shin knocks on Korea with accessories and dinnerware using hanji and lacquerThe artist’s atelier is located in “hanok,” or traditional house, in Bukchon, central Seoul. Small signs reading Kyung Shin Kong Bang (Kyungshin Crafthouse) in Chinese letters hang at several corners of the area’s narrow alleys to guide the visitors. Kim Kyung-shin, a South Korean craft artist, lives, works and exhibits her works there. But she is less well-known here than in Germany, where she lived and worked

March 26, 2012

France holds provocative Helmut Newton exhibit

PARIS (AP) ― Yves Saint Laurent empowered women and the same could be said of his contemporary, iconic fashion photographer Helmut Newton, the subject of a retrospective at Paris’ Grand Palais that is not for the prudish.Several portraits of Saint Laurent, who gave women the male tuxedo, are included in the show, paying tribute to the designer whose empowering, masculine vision of women so influenced Newton.“He was avant garde. The woman in Helmut Newton’s work is powerful and dominant ― the mas

March 26, 2012

Gugak Center to hold concert for Nuclear Security Summit

The National Gugak Center will hold a two-day special concert as a part of several cultural events planned for foreign officials currently in Seoul to attend the 2012 Nuclear Security Summit. The Court Music Orchestra of the center will perform a complete version of “Yeongsanhoesang,” the most representative piece of pungnyu music or music appreciated by Joseon’s high society, today and tomorrow at the National Gugak Center in Yangjae, southern Seoul. The orchestra will perform three versions of

March 26, 2012

Palaces welcome foreign guests during nuclear summit

Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Deoksugung offer a glimpse into traditional side of KoreaAs the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Summit kicked off on Monday, Seoul’s ancient palaces opened special programs for the foreign guests to get a glimpse of Korea’s royal culture throughout the week.The participating palaces are Gyeongbokgung, the main and the largest palace in Seoul; Changdeokgung, a UNESCO world heritage site; and Deoksugung, the only royal palace that houses western style buildings. “Gyeonghoeru Yeonh

March 26, 2012

Se7en to promote new album in Japan and China

Korean singer Se7en will release new albums in Japan, China and Singapore starting next month after wrapping up his promotions in Korea last week.The 27-year-old K-pop singer concluded two months of activities in Seoul with a final appearance on SBS’ “Inkigayo” which aired on March 25, and will begin a series of Asian promotions in April and May, YG Entertainment said.“On April 25, Se7en will release a new single album in Japan and will hold showcases in Tokyo, Fukuoka, Nagoya and Osaka in May t

March 26, 2012