[New in Korean] 'Hush' author returns with political novel, set to pen script for TV adaptation

"Jeong Chi-in: The Politician" (working title) By Jeong Jin-young Annapurna Publishing Novelist Jeong Jin-young has chosen the National Assembly as the setting for the final work in his trilogy dealing with organizations. Following “Silent Warning” (direct translation 2018) and “Jenga” (direct translation 2020), the final part of the trilogy explores the realm of politics, specifically focusing on lawmakers. The story follows a man named Jeong Chi-in, whose name

BooksJuly 14, 2023

Summer festival Dongdaemun Vibe to take place in late July

Update: The Dongdaemun Vibe festival has been canceled due to safety issues from the recent heavy rainfalls. The summer season gets underway at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza with the Dongdaemun Vibe festival later this month. The Seoul Design Foundation announced Friday it will hold the summer festival from July 28 to 30 at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in central Seoul. The main programs of the festival include DD-Pub and DD-Roll, an arcade with beer and wine pop-up shops and a roller-skating area, res

CultureJuly 14, 2023

[Photo News] Top dogs

The 2023 International Canine Federation (FCI) Seoul International Dog Show is being held at aT Center in Seoul, from Friday to Sunday. On Friday morning, the 103rd Korea Kennel Federation Dog Grooming Competition took place at the venue in Seocho-gu, southern Seoul. Participants carried on a spirited competition, each seeking to make their dog the most beautiful. Until Sunday, the KKF holds the 2023 FCI Seoul International Dog Show, which includes the KKF Championship Dog Show as well. Meanwhil

CultureJuly 14, 2023

CHA seeks to register hanji as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage

Efforts to have Korea's hanji, traditional paper handmade from mulberry tree bark, registered as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage have officially commenced, according to the Cultural Heritage Administration Friday. At a Cultural Heritage Committee meeting held Thursday, CHA selected the provisional title, "Hanji's traditional knowledge and technology," to use when applying to inscribe the paper on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Hum

CultureJuly 14, 2023

[Around the Hotels] Promotions and packages

Fairmont Ambassador Seoul unveils summer eel course menu Gallery 7 at Fairmont Ambassador Seoul presents a summer lunch and dinner course menu featuring the traditional seasonal delicacy of eel, through Aug. 10. The four-course menu has been created by hotel chefs using seasonal ingredients. Chawanmushi -- a Japanese-style egg custard dish -- with lobster is followed by a fresh seasonal sashimi selection. The main course features cool soba noodles and eel over rice. The meal ends with dessert

FoodJuly 14, 2023

[Well-curated] Night of new Korean sounds, roller skating away stress and inflated sculptures

The mesmerizing sounds of traditional Korean musical instruments mingled with various visual arts, special effects and modern instruments will entertain audiences at the 2023 Yeo Woo Rock festival running through July 22 at the National Theater of Korea in central Seoul. As part of the festivities, the theater is holding an outdoor event called Yeo Woo Ya on July 15, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., at the theater's Cultural Plaza. To boost the lively atmosphere, rising young traditional Korean musi

CultureJuly 14, 2023

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights across Korea

Jangheung Water Festival The Jeongnamjin Jangheung Water Festival will be held from July 29 to Aug. 6 at areas around the Tamjin River and woodland in Jangheung, South Jeolla Province. The event celebrates the clean and refreshing water of the Tamjin River and Jangheung Lake. Various water activities include canoeing, banana boats, water gun fights and more. Admission fees vary by program. Updated information can be found at https://festival.jangheung.go.kr/festival. Haman Sunflower Festival,

TravelJuly 14, 2023

2023 Korea Young Architect Award given to four rising architects

The Korea Young Architect Award aims to recognize young architects who strive to design better spaces for people based on their own philosophy. This year, four emerging architects from three architecture firms have been recognized for their efforts with the award. Among the 46 architects or collectives that were considered for the award, three architectural studios were chosen -- More Less Architects, Kimnam and Agit Studio -- the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced Thursday. Archi

Arts & DesignJuly 13, 2023

LTI Korea to hold Korean literature event in Los Angeles

The Literature Translation Institute of Korea announced Thursday it is hosting a Korean literary event called "Hangul Literature Beyond Borders" on Thursday and Friday in Los Angeles. The event aims to facilitate the creation of Korean diaspora literature and strengthen the network of global Korean literary communities, according to the institute, an affiliate of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. The event will bring together 21 organizations and 37 publishers and editors

BooksJuly 13, 2023

[Feature] Explicit gesture or acceptable performance?

Girl group Mamamoo’s Hwasa, 27, is under police investigation after a civic group filed an official complaint over the artist's sexually explicit dance moves at a campus festival in May. Hwasa, a popular K-pop star, was performing at Sungkyunkwan University as part of cable channel tvN's music show, “Dancing Queens on the Road." The show follows South Korea's iconic solo dance artists Kim Wan-sun, Uhm Jung-hwa, Lee Hyo-ri, BoA and Hwasa as they travel around the c

CultureJuly 13, 2023

‘King the Land’ producers apologize for show's depiction of Arab prince

The production company behind JTBC’s romantic comedy “King the Land” issued an official apology on Wednesday for its cultural insensitivity. The creators -- Npio Entertainment, BY4M Studio and SLL -- expressed their sincere apology to the viewers in an official apology letter posted on the show's website in Korean, English and Arabic. “We had no intention of caricaturing or distorting any particular country or culture,” the production companies said in the lett

TelevisionJuly 13, 2023

[Herald Interview] 'Broadway needs to find ways to welcome new audiences'

K-Musical Market was launched in 2021 with the support of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Arts Management Service to promote Korean original musicals internationally. The Korean government's hope is that Korean musicals might replicate the achievements of K-pop, movies and dramas. And that hope is not groundless. Musicals account for 75 percent of ticket revenue in the country's performing arts industry and the musical scene is burgeoning with countless big an

PerformanceJuly 13, 2023

[Graphic News] Japanese top inbound travelers to S. Korea in January-May period

Japanese topped the list of inbound travelers to South Korea in the first five months of this year, data showed. A total of 662,579 Japanese nationals visited Korea between January and May, accounting for 19.2 percent of total inbound travelers to the country, according to data compiled by the Korea Tourism Organization. It marked a dramatic hike from 11,425 during the same period of 2022, when Japanese tourists accounted for only 2 percent of the inbound travelers to South Korea. By gender, 34.

TravelJuly 13, 2023

Experimental music group Gongmyoung to embark on voyage 'With Sea'

South Korean experimental music group Gongmyoung is set to perform at the Seoul Donhwamun Traditional Theater on Friday and Saturday. Known for experimenting with sounds from both Western and traditional Korean wind and percussion instruments, Gongmyoung has been an in-house artist at the traditional Korean music performance venue in Jongno-gu since 2022. The upcoming performance titled “With Sea” will take the audience on a musical voyage to the sea. The band has selected 10 songs t

PerformanceJuly 12, 2023

Cache of Cindy Sherman's work from Fondation Louis Vuitton shown in Seoul

Espace Louis Vuitton Seoul has unveiled Fondation Louis Vuitton’s collection of works by American artist Cindy Sherman, an artist with many faces. She becomes a man, a clown, an older lady and a woman with different identities. Her photographed self-portraits seem to imply one has different identities or roles in life. The exhibition in Seoul shows some 10 photo portraits by the artist, who is known as a mysterious icon who portrays herself as different figures. The works being shown in

Arts & DesignJuly 12, 2023

‘Squid Game 2’ production staff apologizes for bossy attitude during shoot

“Squid Game 2,” the sequel to the megahit Netflix series, is stirring up controversy online over alleged rude behavior toward users of Incheon Airport from production staff. “We heard that citizens were inconvenienced while 'Squid Game 2' was filming at Incheon Airport on Monday,” stated "Squid Game 2” makers on Wednesday. “We did our best to announce to citizens of the on-site situation as much detail as possible.” The producers offered a

TelevisionJuly 12, 2023

Kim Seo-hyung feels empathy, sadness for her character in ‘Greenhouse’

Actor Kim Seo-hyung explores why bad things happen to nice people in the thriller "Greenhouse," in which she stars as the protagonist. The story of “Greenhouse” revolves around a nurse and caregiver, Moon-jung, who lives in a greenhouse. It delves into the character's downfall as she tries to cover up the accidental death of an old couple in her care. Kim said she cried after reading the movie's script for the first time. “I did not ask myself whether or not

FilmJuly 12, 2023

[Herald Interview] VisitKorea relaunch seeks to entice travelers with unique tourism experiences

A crucial factor in attracting potential tourists and ensuring their return visits to Korea post-pandemic is providing up-to-date visual information online that aligns with individual preferences, according to You Jin-ho, the Korea Tourism Organization’s executive vice president of the digital tourism division. The KTO, which relaunched its VisitKorea website and mobile app on July 5, has integrated over 270,000 images alongside travel information and travel routes on the platforms to bett

CultureJuly 12, 2023

Paul Kim, Taekwoncre tapped as ambassadors for 2023 Cheonan K-Culture Expo

The city of Cheonan on Tuesday named popular singer-songwriter Paul Kim and the taekwondo-themed performance crew Taekwoncre as ambassadors for the city's upcoming culture expo in August. Cheonan added two additional members, following members of K-pop boy band Ateez, who were appointed as ambassadors in June, to promote the cultural festival to a wider audience and enhance its reputation. Kim, who has mesmerized many fans with hit songs -- including “Me After You,” “After

CultureJuly 12, 2023

WWW 2023 looks for next big web novels

World Wide Web Novels is on the hunt for the next big web novels through a competition running through Aug. 31. Organized by local IT firm Thingsflow, WWW 2023 aims to discover new talents that can lead the Korean creative content industry and promote the web novel-genre that has been growing rapidly in recent years. Many of the web novels, or novels published online, have been adapted as TV dramas and films. JTBC's "Reborn Rich" (2022), starring heartthrob Song Joong-ki, was orig

BooksJuly 12, 2023