A young college student stranded in a rocky mountain on the outskirts of Seoul grabs a rope to go down a rugged cliff. His friend tries to stop him as the rope is not long enough, but he is too late and ends up looking at a length of rope swinging helplessly in a fierce wind. This introductory scene of the Korean comic series “Peak” might be made into a film as its provider Rolling Story signed a film production deal with a US entertainment agency in October last year. “Peak” revolves around fiv

Culture Aug. 16, 2016

Australian artist Emma Hack paints on a model’s body until it perfectly aligns with the intricate, colorful patterns of the wallpaper behind the model. In other work, she perfectly adjusts the contours of her models to match the detailed patterns of flowers and animals. The artist’s work -- captured in photographs -- have been exhibited in major cities around the world, including New York, Hong Kong and Singapore. She is holding her first solo exhibition in Korea at Savina Museum of Contemporary

Performance Aug. 11, 2016

Buying art isn’t as easy as buying books or movie tickets. Even if you fall in love with a piece of art at an exhibition, taking it home could turn out to be the priciest decision you ever make. Fearing shrinking art sales and the domination of the art market by super-rich collectors, the art world is coming up with ways to make art more accessible to a wider audience and to attract art lovers to experience buying artworks. The Affordable Art Fair Seoul, the Korean edition of the London-based gl

Performance Aug. 10, 2016

What started out as a hobby for Kim Seung-min in 2015 has grown into a YouTube channel with 1.6 million subscribers and total views of 1 billion for more than 600 videos. Kim’s channel Toy Monster focuses on children aged between 3 and 10. It introduces colorful toys and materials as well as how to play with them in videos that range from five to eight minutes. It ranks 21st on a list of top 30 most-viewed YouTube channels for kids’ education globally, according to Socialblade, a YouTube statist

Aug. 2, 2016

A huge wooden table fills an entire exhibition hall at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, overwhelming visitors with its scale. A museum employee hands visitors a lump of clay and asks them to make a ball with it on the elliptical wooden table that has a diameter of 19 meters. “I don’t think I have made anything out of a lump of clay for many years. It used to be a familiar material when we were young,” said artist Kim Soo-ja at the press preview for her solo exhibition a

Performance July 28, 2016

Nam June Paik, a pioneer of video art, is both famous and unknown to many in Korea. A query on the name “Nam June Paik” on Korean web portal Naver brings up several questions posted by young students asking who the artist is for their schoolwork. “My son, who is a first-year middle school student, doesn’t really know much about him either,” said Kim Bang-eun, president of Gallery Yeh, currently hosting the Nam June Paik exhibition at Seoul’s landmark Dongdaemun Design Plaza. “I think it’s becaus

Performance July 27, 2016

In August 1975, a fisherman landed an unusual catch off the west coast of Korea. In his fishing net were six ceramic vessels including celadons -- or pottery made with celadon glaze -- that date back to the 14th century Yuan Dynasty China. This prompted people to say that there must be a shipwreck with more prized relics buried deep in the muddy seabed off the island of Jeungdo, Sinan in South Jeolla Province. A year later, archaeologists launched an underwater salvage operation which continued

Culture July 26, 2016

Herald Corp. will hold a design festival introducing innovative products by leading designers in Korea from July 29-31 at the HiBrand shopping mall in Seoul. The three-day sale of design products, organized in cooperation with HiBrand, will present a variety of design products ranging from stationery and interior decor items to clothing and accessories. The market is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.The festival also offers classes where visitors can participate in making simple cards, gift boxes and

Arts & Design July 25, 2016

Short-lived art festivals and biennales abound in Korean cities, but the city of Anyang located 20 kilometers from the capital city of Seoul seeks to create art that can have a long-lasting impact on residents’ lives. “We are interested in interacting with Anyang and the public. We have worked together with artists to find out what the parameter of the public space is, what can define public art and how we can meet the public through artworks and production,” said Joo Eun-gie, the art director o

Performance July 19, 2016

The kings of the Joseon era (1392-1910) tucked into a total of seven meals daily and each one involved meticulous planning. The day would begin with a medicinal herbal soup early in the morning, followed by breakfast, lunch and dinner with light meals and snacks between the three meals. All the meals were carefully planned and prepared by court doctors and kitchen staff, who regarded King’s food as an important part of national politics in the kingdom, which existed more than 500 years before Ko

Food July 14, 2016

The Plastic Art Seoul 2016, Korea‘s first art fair devoted to sculptures and installations, will open next week in Seoul.The art fair will bring together more than 4,000 pieces of plastic art by some 150 artists represented by major galleries in Korea. Plastic art refers to 3-D visual artworks using materials, stones, wood, metals and mixed media. “The fair offers a chance for visitors to view a variety of sculptures and installations in one spot,” said Shin Jun-won, head of the Plastic Art Seou

Performance July 12, 2016

Two exhibitions in Seoul are offering a rare glimpse into the lives of different social classes in the Joseon era.Seoul Arts Center’s Calligraphy Museum has brought together a rare collection of still life paintings from the Joseon era, depicting stacks of books with decorative luxury items, which were popular among royals and aristocrats. In contrast, the exhibition also features paintings of Chinese characters that wealthy commoners hung in their homes to emulate the upper class’ cultural tast

Performance July 11, 2016

The new group exhibition of young artists at Kukje Gallery asks a question that the youth of today can easily relate to -- to what extent do we need to try to be successful and famous? “There is desperation in today’s young generation to be successful and well-known. But, at the same time, they often see and fear that some fast-earned fame may be ephemeral,” said Kim Sung-won, an art professor and critic who curated the exhibition, at the press preview of the exhibition last week. “This exhibiti

Performance July 4, 2016

The Culture Ministry revealed “Creative Korea” as a new slogan for branding the nation on Monday. “The new brand slogan promotes the value that the Republic of Korea upholds and an image that the country wants to promote abroad,” said Kim Jong-deok, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, at a news conference announcing the brand slogan and logo design on Monday.  The new slogan and logo were created following nationwide polls the government conducted among citizens who were asked about keyword

Culture July 4, 2016

Artist Lee U-fan reiterated Thursday that all 13 paintings that the National Forensic Service identified as counterfeits were authentic and revealed that a police officer tried to get him to say that some of the paintings were fakes.“All 13 paintings are undoubtedly mine,” said Lee at the press conference Thursday in Seoul. “They are created with my own flow, rhythm and colors,” he added.  Much to the surprise of many, he claimed that one of the police officers present with him during the examin

Performance June 30, 2016