Giving ephemeral graffiti art permanence

In a nod to a form of street art that has gained traction in the contemporary art scene, graffiti, once regarded as little more than delinquent scribbles found on the walls of derelict neighborhoods, has now been brought inside the gallery.Following in the steps of pop art, graffiti has become a leading genre recording the phenomena and emotions of contemporary times, according to 53-year-old graffiti legend JonOne. “I think it represents our generation,” he said last Thursday during a press pre

PerformanceDec. 11, 2016

Climate change film ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ gets a sequel

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Al Gore’s climate change documentary, “An Inconvenient Truth,” is getting a sequel.Paramount Pictures said Friday the follow-up to the Oscar-winning original will premiere at next January’s Sundance Film Festival.In the new documentary, former Vice President Gore examines global warming’s escalation and the solutions at hand, Paramount said.In a statement, Gore called for a re-dedication to solving what he called the climate crisis and said there are reasons to be hopeful.He

FilmDec. 11, 2016

Stones roll back the years with chart-topping album

LONDON (AFP) -- The Rolling Stones on Friday scored their first British No. 1 album in over 20 years, a day after frontman Mick Jagger became a father for the eighth time, aged 73.“Blue & Lonesome,” a tribute to the blues legends who inspired the iconic British band, sold 106,000 copies, making it the second-highest opening-week sales for an album in 2016, behind David Bowie’s “Blackstar.”“We are absolutely delighted with the success of ‘Blue & Lonesome’ in the UK and around the world,” said the

PerformanceDec. 11, 2016

India’s colonial-era opera house restored to past glory

MUMBAI (AFP) – India’s only surviving opera house has been restored to its colonial-era glory, reopening to the public more than two decades after it closed in disrepair. Once the place to be seen for Mumbai’s great and good it was forced to close in the 1990s after years of financial struggles. But a painstaking seven-year project has transformed the century-old building in Mumbai from a crumbling wreck in danger of collapse to an ornate replica of its 1916 glory days, albeit with some importan

CultureDec. 11, 2016

New exhibition explores legacy of black fashion designers

NEW YORK (AP) -- As a girl, Tracy Reese thought she might be an architect. Then she caught the fashion bug.She knew, of course, that designers who are black like her existed. She used to snap up Willi Smith at The Limited growing up in Detroit. She headed to New York with high hopes.“When I first came to New York my eyes were really opened to the breadth of the industry, but I was looking for our place in it,” recalled Reese, who has dressed first lady Michelle Obama.Reese, along with other note

Arts & DesignDec. 11, 2016

Netflix spokesperson says Prince discussed reality show

NEW YORK (AP) – Here’s something else we lost with the death of Prince: A Netflix reality series centered on his Paisley Park home in Minnesota.A Netflix spokesperson told the Associated Press on Saturday that the online entertainment company had been in “discussions” with Prince about a series, but that the project did not “come to fruition” before his death in April. Photographer Maya Washington, a friend of the performer known for such hits as “Purple Rain” and “1999,” told GQ recently that h

PeopleDec. 11, 2016

France opens new Lascaux prehistoric art cave replica

MONTIGNAC, France (AFP) -- A new replica of the stunning Lascaux cave paintings was unveiled Saturday in the Dordogne region of southwest France, more than seven decades after the prehistoric art was first discovered.“This is more than a copy, it’s a work of art!” said French President Francois Hollande as he visited the center in Montignac, the village at the foot of the hills where the original cave complex is located.The new project dubbed “Lascaux 4,” which opens to the public on Thursday, a

CultureDec. 11, 2016

Dylan expresses awe over Nobel Prize, alludes to Shakespeare

STOCKHOLM (AP) -- Bob Dylan has expressed awe at receiving the Nobel Prize in literature and thanked the Swedish Academy for including him among the “giants” of writing.Dylan was absent from Saturday’s award ceremony and banquet in Stockholm. But in remarks read by the US ambassador, he alluded to the debate about whether the award should go to a songwriter.Dylan said when Shakespeare wrote “Hamlet,” he probably was thinking about which actors to pick and where to find a skull.In his words: “I’m

CultureDec. 11, 2016

‘La La Land’ expected to lead Golden Globe nominations

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Nominations for the Golden Globes will be unveiled Monday with critics expecting musical “La La Land” to lead the pack ahead of “Moonlight,” “Manchester by the Sea” and “Lion.” In a departure from last year‘s awards calendar, the announcements come before the influential Screen Actors Guild nominations, making them the first major bellwether of momentum going into the Oscars race.The Globe nominations, set to be made at the crack of dawn in Beverly Hills, are decided by the H

FilmDec. 11, 2016

[Album Review] Childish Gambino gets immersed in the funk

Childish Gambino“Awaken, My Love!”(Glassnote Records)It’s OK not to “get” Childish Gambino’s third studio album “Awaken, My Love!” With its lush soundscapes and sparse lyrics, one can only gather that the funk-drenched latest release from the multi-talented Donald Glover is a collection that is to be felt first and understood second -- if understanding is possible at all. Outstanding first single “Me and Your Mama” and equally arresting follow-up track “Redbone” are the easiest to digest of the

PerformanceDec. 9, 2016

[Album Review] Massive Kate Bush album a concert series souvenir

Kate Bush“Before the Dawn”(Concord Records)Kate Bush gives fans an exquisite souvenir with “Before the Dawn,” a massive live album taken from her series of 22 concerts in 2014. With tantalizingly few chart hits and dominated by two conceptual collections, the triple album conjures its magic spells with Bush’s powerfully expressive voice, her captivating songs and the integrity of an artistic vision that nurtures and challenges the imagination.By all accounts, her residency at London’s Hammersmit

PerformanceDec. 9, 2016

[Album Review] Eclectic cultural influence in ‘The Hamilton Mixtape’

Various artists“The Hamilton Mixtape”(Atlantic)Long before President-elect Donald Trump took on the cultural juggernaut that is “Hamilton” and made it front-page news, creator Lin-Manuel Miranda had been looking for a way to expand the musical’s influence beyond Broadway.With “The Hamilton Mixtape” (Atlantic), which Miranda says is the first of at least two, he and a star-studded cast of collaborators ranging from The Roots to Sia and Miguel employ a variety of strategies to bring the show’s mus

PerformanceDec. 9, 2016

[Arts calendar] Musicals, exhibitions, concerts and more

Theater“Jekyll and Hyde Musical”: Inviting the original Broadway cast members, the Jekyll and Hyde Musical will be hitting stages across the country next March including Seoul, Daegu, Busan and Gwangju. The musical horror-drama is based on the internationally acclaimed novel “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson and is a tale of the struggles of good and evil. The upcoming production will star Kyle Dean Massey, Bradley Dean, Diana DeGarmo and Lindsey Bliven. The

PerformanceDec. 9, 2016

Jeju Island cuisine at Hallasan

In Korea, the diversity of seaweed can be dizzying, from silken thin maesaengi to strands of emerald green parae and wide ribbons of miyeok. Among the staggering Korean lexicon of edible algae there is a delicacy traditionally enjoyed on Jeju Island called mojaban or mom. Thicker than parae but thinner than miyeok, mom is customarily enjoyed in a pork-based soup called mom-guk on Jeju Island.On the mainland, mom-guk can be had at Hallasan Korean Food Restaurant, which specializes in Jeju Island

FoodDec. 9, 2016

[Box Office] Upcoming movie releases

Pandora(Korea)Opened Dec. 7Drama, thriller. Directed by Park Jung-wooA 6.1 magnitude earthquake hits the western coastal town of Wolchon-ri in the vicinity of a nuclear power plant. The earthquake causes fissures in the plant’s pipes, exposing the surrounding areas to radiation. The government and the president (Kim Myoung-min) fumble with the crisis, while the lives of the plant’s workers are in great danger.La La Land(US)Opened Dec. 7Drama, musical. Directed by Damien ChazelleMia (Emma Stone)

FilmDec. 9, 2016

[Travel Bits] Upcoming festivals, travel news

Everland Romantic IlluminationsEverland’s Romantic Illumination festival is continuing its celebrations until March 1 with beautiful and enchanting illuminations for a romantic and memorable holiday season.The festival will feature an extravagant 26-meter-high Romantic Tower Tree, which will be displayed at the fountain area between Four Seasons Garden and Rose Garden. The hollowed out Christmas tree tower can accommodate up to 50 people.The tree’s interior showers the visitors with enchanting l

CultureDec. 9, 2016

[Around the Hotels] This week’s promotions and packages

Breast cancer donation by Conrad Seoul Conrad Seoul held a ceremony on Monday to deliver proceeds from donations to the Korea Breast Cancer Foundation. The “Conrad in Pink” campaign was held throughout October, the month of breast cancer awareness, and collected 5 million won. The donation will be used to support surgery and treatment for breast cancer patients as well as funding new campaigns for breast cancer awareness. The hotel sold “Pink is Love” package in October, where a portion of earni

FoodDec. 9, 2016

Chili you can make on the fly, enjoyed with sparkling or red wine

You need a strong wine to stand up to a smoky dish. The three bottles recommended to pair with this easy weeknight white-bean chili are each fierce in a different way, be it in acidity, tannins or smoky notes in the wine itself. Set aside about 30 minutes to whip up the belly-warming bowl, which leaves you plenty of time in your evening to enjoy a second helping and just one more glass of wine -- said again and again until the bottle is dry. Smoky white bean chili with porkBrown 1 pound ground p

FoodDec. 9, 2016

Jamaica’s sweet lodgings over the water, atop the sea

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica -- I totally admit this is a first-world problem. But for the life of me I can’t remember what my private butler said about how to turn on the underwater lights so I can see through the window on my bedroom floor.The headaches! The difficulty of being the first guest in this entrancing villa! I think I need a soak in my private infinity pool or a rest on the overwater hammock to calm down.Suddenly, a breakthrough. I push a small button labeled “ripples” on the wall. And alth

TravelDec. 9, 2016