[Well-curated] Hong Kong waffles, Tom Cruise films and tomb guardians

Hong Kong waffles at Ikseon-dong hanok village It would be a perfect weather this weekend to stroll around the maze-like hanok village at Ikseon-dong in Jongno-gu, central Seoul. The narrow alleys that run through this cluster of traditional houses are paced with hip cafes, restaurants, pubs and shops. Among the cafes is Iksun Jutaek, literally meaning Iksun house, which offers Hong Kong-style bubble waffles. Bubble waffles, crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, are a common street sna

CultureJune 9, 2023

World-leading British gallery White Cube to open in Seoul this fall

White Cube, one of the world’s leading galleries, will open in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul, which will become the gallery's second space in Asia after Hong Kong. The space will be unveiled this fall, the gallery announced Thursday. The gallery will be located in Sinsa-dong, close to Dosan Park and other cultural institutions such as the SONGEUN Art and Cultural Foundation and the nonprofit Atelier Hermes gallery. The gallery space is located in a ceramic-encased building, which is also

Arts & DesignJune 9, 2023

[New in Korean] Memory and insomnia echo through 'Seasons of Its Own'

"Seasons of Its Own" By Kwon Yeo-sun Munhakdongne Publishing Several years ago, Kwon Yeo-sun, residing at a writers’ residence in Wonju, Gangwon Province, overheard a memorable dialogue between a fellow writer and the residence’s security guard. “Where could such a large bug (referring to a deer beetle) possibly come in?” After contemplating for a moment, the security guard said, “Bugs can come in from anywhere.” The exchange amused Kwon so much that

BooksJune 9, 2023

[Around the Hotels] Promotions and packages

Four Seasons Hotel Seoul collaborates with Won Soju Four Seasons Hotel Seoul's late-night contemporary bar OUL is collaborating with Korea’s trending liquor brand, Won Soju. Using totomi, a type of rice grown exclusively in Wonju, Gangwon Province, Won Soju presents two additive-free soju varieties -- smooth Original, which is distilled then aged in traditional Korean onggi clay pots, and the Classic, distinguished by a rich and yeasty aroma. OUL guests can enjoy Won Soju by the gla

FoodJune 9, 2023

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights across Korea

Boryeong Mud Festival The 26th edition of the Boryeong Mud Festival will take place in various parts of Daecheon Beach in Boryeong, South Chungcheong Province. This year’s festival will start on July 21 and run through Aug. 6. Ranging from a mud train, body painting and a mud water park to beach parties and a K-pop concert featuring rapper San E, boy band Pentagon, girl group WJSN, Billlie and more, the festival promises a fun-filled time. Admission to the Boryeong Sea Mud Exhibition is 12

TravelJune 9, 2023

Thaddaeus Ropac Seoul to expand

Thaddaeus Ropac Seoul will expand its current space in the Fort Hill building in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, doubling the exhibition space with the addition of a ground-floor gallery, the European gallery announced Thursday. The gallery opened its first space in Asia in October 2021 to expand its presence in the Asian market. Austrian gallerist Thaddaeus Ropac has been running galleries for 40 years, operating spaces in Salzburg, London, Paris and Seoul. The gallery represents more than 60 art

Arts & DesignJune 9, 2023

Cormac McCarthy and Margaret Atwood nominated for Pak Kyongni Prize

Four international writers, including Cormac McCarthy of the US and Canada's Margaret Atwood, have been nominated for the 12th Pak Kyongni Prize, according to the award’s organizers on Wednesday. Antonio Lobo Antunes from Portugal and Christoph Ransmayr from Austria are the other two foreign nominees. A novelist and retired medical doctor, Antunes has long been considered a strong contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature. He is widely recognized for “The Land at the End of th

BooksJune 8, 2023

Exhibition showcases reproductions of Emperor Gojong’s gifts to Prince Henry of Prussia

A special exhibition of Emperor Gojong’s diplomatic gifts to Prince Henry of Prussia in 1899 will open at Deokhongjeon Hall inside Deoksugung Palace on June 20. The event commemorates the 140th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Korea and Germany. Titled, "Gifts for Prince Henry of Prussia in 1899," the exhibition, hosted by the Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation and sponsored by Porsche Korea, presents three key gifts that Emperor Gojong presented to Prince Henry (1862-1929)

CultureJune 8, 2023

French visionary Preljocaj's ballet 'Swan Lake' brings ecological narrative to timeless classic

French modern ballet choreographer Angelin Preljocaj brings his new take on the canonical classical ballet “Swan Lake” to the LG Arts Center from June 22-25. Preljocaj’s rendition of “Swan Lake” premiered in France in October 2020 as the visionary choreographer’s third production of narrative ballet, following “Romeo and Juliet” (1996) and “Snow White” (2008). Dancer-choreographer Preljocaj has been at the forefront of contemporary ball

PerformanceJune 7, 2023

'Supporting young artists enriches our life'

Economic ties may have their ups and downs, but not so with cultural bonds, said Abu Dhabi's leading patron of the arts recently in Seoul, when discussing cultural exchanges between the two sides, whose strategic partnership covering business, energy and defense got a boost in January with a state visit to the United Arab Emirates by President Yoon Suk Yeol. “Once you connect in culture, this is solid because when your culture means something to me, I will protect it no matter what,

CultureJune 7, 2023

Marking 20th year, Music In PyeongChang to highlight nature through classical music

Music in PyeongChang, an annual music festival held in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province, will return to the theme of nature to celebrate its 20th anniversary this year. In 2004, the festival was inaugurated under the theme of “nature’s inspiration.” From July 26 to Aug. 5, the festival will showcase 20 concerts and eight outreach concerts with pieces such as Schumann's "Forest Scenes," Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons," and Schubert's "Trout Quin

PerformanceJune 7, 2023

‘His Man’ to return with season 2

Local streaming service Wavve on Tuesday confirmed the return of its popular reality dating show “His Man” with a second season. “His Man,” which premiered in July 2022, was South Korea’s first gay dating reality show. The 11-part series initially caught many viewers’ attention with its cast of gay male participants, the first ever in a dating reality show. As their romances developed, the couples' stories were seen as more real and sincere than any other

TelevisionJune 7, 2023

Woo Do-hwan, Lee Sang-yi unite for action-packed ‘Bloodhounds’

Woo Do-hwan and Lee Sang-yi band together against ruthless loan sharks in the upcoming Netflix original series “Bloodhounds,” the first series project by director Jason Kim, who helmed “Midnight Runners” (2017) and “The Divine Fury” (2019). In the eight-part series, Woo and Lee star as young boxers Gun-woo and Wop-jin, respectively, who seek to take down Myung-gil (Park Sung-woong). Myung-gil preys on the financially desperate, following an unfortunate inciden

FilmJune 7, 2023

'Dynamite' tops 1.7 b YouTube views to become most-watched BTS MV

The music video of K-pop superband BTS' 2020 megahit single "Dynamite" has topped 1.7 billion YouTube views, becoming the most-viewed music video by the boy group, its agency said Tuesday. The "Dynamite" music video surpassed the threshold on YouTube at 8:37 p.m. on Monday, becoming the first music video by BTS to achieve the feat, BigHit Music said. "Dynamite" is an upbeat disco pop song carrying a message of hope. It was released in August 2020 in the depth

PerformanceJune 6, 2023

[Herald Review] Painting and beyond: Diverse sides of Dufy explored in two Seoul exhibitions

French artist Raoul Dufy (1877-1953) encompassed different art styles throughout his career. Influenced by impressionism in the 19th century, his art began to evolve, interacting with other movements ranging from post-impressionism and fauvism to cubism. As a result of multi-faceted approach, Dufy’s name is not as easily recognized in South Korea as Vincent van Gogh, Henri Matisse or Pablo Picasso -- representative artists in the movements which he incorporated into his works. However, thi

Arts & DesignJune 6, 2023

K-films by women directors to be screened at Academy Museum in LA

South Korean women filmmakers will screen their works at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles this month, the second K-film project to be held in the American museum. According to the Korea Foundation, this special screening series, titled “A New Wave of K-Cinema: Korean Women Directors,” will run from Thursday until June 29th. The list of films includes contemporary films directed by Korean women such as Yim Soon-rye’s “Waikiki Brothers” (2001) and

FilmJune 6, 2023

Exhibition unveils century-old pansori, court music sounds

The National Gugak Center and the Arumjigi Culture Keepers Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting traditional Korean culture, have collaborated to showcase a unique exhibition featuring the captivating sounds of pansori, court music and traditional folk songs from century-old records. The “House of Records, See the Sound" exhibition, held at the Arumjigi cultural center in Jongno-gu, Seoul, aims to recreate the auditory experience of traditional Korean music fr

CultureJune 6, 2023

[Herald Review] For some, owning a house feels sinful in film ‘Dream Palace’

In the poignant social realism film “Dream Palace,” Hye-jung (Kim Sun-young) hopes to begin a new life in an apartment building named Dream Palace with her son Dong-wook (Choi Min-young). The block stands tall in the middle of nowhere, located in somewhat awkwardly new suburb that this family feels unsuited to. But this new home is priceless to Hye-jung, because she has bought it with the compensation she received after her husband was killed in an industrial accident. After fighting

FilmJune 6, 2023

New book delves into Chun Doo-hwan’s life and legacy

Chun Doo-hwan died on Nov. 23, 2021. “Rather than grieving over the loss of a former leader, there was a shared sense of regret among the people -- a regret for the missed opportunity to bring him the justice he deserved,” novelist Jeong A-eun said at a recent press conference. “Then it dawned on me. This man didn’t pass one or two years after leaving the highest office. He lived a long 33 years. Why didn’t they do something during all those years?” Her endeav

BooksJune 6, 2023

National Dance Company of Korea's 'Sanjo' visualizes Korean music through dance

The National Dance Company of Korea is set to perform “Sanjo” at Haeoreum Theater from June 23-25. “Sanjo” reinterprets the beauty of “sanjo” -- traditional Korean music involving an instrumental solo -- in a modern perspective, expressing melody through dance and mise-en-scenes. Sanjo music is characterized by a blend of formal beauty and spontaneity, as the melody is crafted freely within a structured framework. Similar to Western jazz, the genre allows for

PerformanceJune 6, 2023