Babies are more important than work: GM CEO

GM Korea president and CEO Sergio Rocha has reportedly been encouraging female colleagues to take the time to better balance their work and families by telling pregnant workers that their babies are more important than their work. “GM Korea issues pink ID cards to pregnant women, who are excluded from nightshift as well as other excessive duties,” he told several female reporters invited to the GM Korea 4th Women’s Conference held on Wednesday in Seoul. Under the theme of “Growing Together,” fem

PeopleNov. 5, 2014

Online resources plentiful for getting tips on expat life

A reader writes that she plans to give up her apartment, store her belongings and live and travel outside the U.S. for a year. “Can you recommend resources on this subject?” Answer: There’s enough information on this to fill a book, and a quick search using such terms as “expat” and “extended travel” will turn up several of them.The biggest issue is where to start. Here’s what Karen McCann says: “I often tell people that a journey of a thousand steps begins with an online search.”She knows well

Expat LivingNov. 4, 2014

Song Hae to be awarded Order of Cultural Merit

The Korean government said Tuesday Song Hae, the host of the country’s longest-running TV show, “KBS Nationwide Singing Contest,” will be awarded the silver crown of the Order of Cultural Merit on Nov. 17.The Order of Cultural Merit is awarded to those who have achieved an outstanding performance and greatly contributed to Korea’s media and art scene.The 87-year-old TV personality has hosted the show for 26 years since 1988. He is known for his eloquence in emceeing and witty comments, which hav

PeopleNov. 4, 2014

Design ideas with a twist

Using 3-D printing technology, Dutch design studio Minale-Maeda has designed a set of plastic connectors that make it possible to assemble your own wooden furniture. Without using any tools, the connectors can be used to join wooden legs and a wooden tabletop to make a functional table.  The design studio has gone a step further by disclosing the blueprint for the connector so that anyone can make one with a 3-D printer. A 3-D-printed connector for the wooden legs of a table by Minale-MaedaThe t

Arts & DesignNov. 4, 2014

Revisiting Korea’s modern literature

The era of modern literature in Korea began in 1894 when the government launched sweeping reforms which called for establishing public schools, writing in Hangul, the Korean alphabet, instead of Chinese characters and opening the door to foreign literary works.A special exhibition is underway in Seoul to offer an overview of modern Korean literature, which brewed in a tumultuous period characterized by the fall of the monarchy at the end of the Joseon era (1392-1910), the rise of Japanese imperi

BooksNov. 4, 2014

Sesame Street marks 45th birthday

NEW YORK (AP) ― You don’t get to be the longest-running children’s show in U.S. TV history by doing the same thing over and over. So even though parents who grew up watching “Sesame Street” can still see old favorites like Big Bird, things on the street have changed since the show debuted 45 years ago on Nov. 10, 1969. Cookie Monster now exercises self-control and sometimes eats fruits and vegetables. Millions of kids watch the show on phones and computers instead of TV. And there’s less time sp

TelevisionNov. 4, 2014

MC Mong tops music charts with sixth album

MC Mong. (IS Entertainment Group)The embattled South Korean hip-hop artist MC Mong, who was once mired in controversy over draft evasion, topped major local music charts with his latest track for the second straight day. As of Tuesday morning, the single “Did you miss me?” off his sixth full-length album “Miss Me or Diss Me,” took the No. 1 spot on all 10 online real-time music charts including Naver Music, MelOn, Daum and Mnet after its release on Monday. The 13-track album comes five years aft

Nov. 4, 2014

You Hee-yeol to release first Toy album in 7 years

You Hee-yeol. (Antenna Music)Antenna Music CEO and famed singer-songwriter-pianist You Hee-yeol will be dropping a new album as part of his one-man project, Toy, on Nov. 18, according to an announcement by Antenna Music on Tuesday. The duo-band-turned-solo act Toy first debuted in 1994 and featured the ballad vocal styles of You and Yoon Jeong-oh. After parting ways in 1996, You has been the sole member of Toy, which has released six full-length albums to date. Toy’s upcoming seventh studio albu

Nov. 4, 2014

JYP celebrating 20 years with anniversary show

Park Jin-young. (JYP Entertainment)Iconic K-pop producer and solo artist Park Jin-young will be hosting a special anniversary concert to commemorate two decades in the music industry. Teaming up with Milk Music, Park will be putting on a one-and-half-hour-long show on Nov. 8 at Seoul Olympic Park’s Olympic Hall, performing 42 No. 1 singles his since debuting 20 years ago. Now one of the K-pop industry’s best-known producers as head of talent agency JYP Entertainment, Park made his singing debut

Nov. 4, 2014

Swift pulls music from streaming service Spotify

NEW YORK (AP) ― Spotify stopped streaming Taylor Swift’s music at her request Monday, setting up a business struggle between the leading purveyor of a new music distribution system and the industry’s most popular artist. The music streaming service sounded like a spurned boyfriend in a statement announcing the split. It said Swift’s management told it to pull the music late last week and it was done Monday, so all of her songs are no longer available to its 40 million users. “We were both young

PerformanceNov. 4, 2014

Simplicity and space explored in Judd exhibit

Simple, abstract sculptural objects by American artist Donald Judd are on display in Seoul, shedding light on one of the most significant artists of the postwar period. Though widely associated with minimalism, Judd (1928-1994) objected to this term, saying that it was a generalization and misinterpretation of his philosophy. He created his own term, “specific object,” for his thought that every component of an object including materials, form and colors can be used to explore space. It’s also t

PerformanceNov. 3, 2014

Massive Buddha painting on display

A Buddhist painting currently on display at the National Museum of Korea in Seoul inspires awe through its sheer size and grandiosity rather than its artistry. The hanging scroll from the Joseon era stands 1,317 meters tall, about the same height as a five-story building. Dating back to 1749, the artifact, designated as National Treasure No. 1269, is one of the largest gwaebul paintings in Korea.  A hanging scroll of the Buddha from Gaeamsa Temple. (National Museum of Korea)Gwaebul are Buddhist

PerformanceNov. 3, 2014