'Visit Korean Heritage' campaign back with global promotion project

The Visit Korean Heritage campaign, which began last year, is back, and this time with some new global projects, according to its co-organizers the Cultural Heritage Administration and the Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation. “We can sense people’s sentiment toward Korean culture changed recently through contents like BTS’ Daechwita, band Leenalchi’s Korea promotional videos and Minari,” Kim Hyun-mo, head of the Cultural Heritage Administration, said during a press

CultureJune 11, 2021

MMCA highlights humans’ playful side

An exhibition at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, reminds people to be playful instead of getting obsessed with the results of their actions in this efficiency-oriented society. The exhibition, “Switch Things Up,” was inspired by Dutch historian and cultural theorist Johan Huizinga’s (1872-1945) philosophy of “homo ludens,” which suggests that the desire for play is a defining characteristic of humanity and urges a return to “playf

Arts & DesignJune 11, 2021

Korean ballet dancer Park Sae-eun named “star” dancer at the Paris Opera Ballet

Park Sae-eun, 32, was named Etoile at the Paris Opera Ballet on Friday. She is the first Asian ballet dancer to obtain the title, which means star dancer, in the company’s 352-year history. The announcement was made after the “Romeo and Juliet” ballet performance began Thursday at the Bastille Opera in France. Park played Juliet alongside Paul Marque, who was designated star dancer in December. In 2011, she became an official member of the elite dance company in France an

FilmJune 11, 2021

Seoul Auction to hold biggest art auction since 2008

Seoul Auction announced Friday that it would hold its 161st major art auction June 22. Works by famous Korean and international artists will be up for sale, for a total of 204 pieces both modern and antique, with a combined estimated value of 23 billion won ($20.68 million). This is the highest amount for any single auction in South Korea since the 2008 financial crisis, according to Seoul Auction. The works by renowned Korean modern artists will include Lee Jung-seop’s oil painting &

Arts & DesignJune 11, 2021

British Council of Korea, Korea Foundation to look for ideas to tackle climate change

The British Council of Korea and the Korea Foundation on Friday announced that they were looking for creative ideas to tackle climate change. Cross-border teams from the UK and Korea can compete for funds to support their projects by submitting applications by July 2. “We hope this program can expand the cooperation and conversations between Korea and the UK about climate change issues we face,” said Sam Harvey, director of the British Council of Korea. Nationals from the two co

CultureJune 11, 2021

S. Korean actor Song Kang-ho selected to Cannes' jury

South Korean actor Song Kang-ho has been named a jury member of this year's Cannes Film Festival, industry sources said Friday. The "Parasite" star recently accepted an offer to join the competition jury of the 74th edition of the world's most prestigious film festival, according to the sources. The full list of the jurors led by American filmmaker Spike Lee will be announced next week. Song will be the fifth Korean to be a member of Cannes' jury, following director Shin Sang-ok in

FilmJune 11, 2021

Mise-en-Scene Short Film Festival to celebrate 20th anniversary with special events

The country’s annual festival of short films is back, after an announcement earlier this year that it would be discontinued. Defying the odds, the 20th Mise-en-Scene Short Film Festival will run June 24 to June 30. Some changes have been made to the weeklong event, however, as the ongoing pandemic batters the film industry. This year’s festival will not have competition categories. Instead, the festival will screen 20 films that made a mark in the event’s two-decade history

FilmJune 11, 2021

[Travel bits] Festivals, sights across Korea

Hansan Ramie Fabric Cultural Festival Taking place in Seocheon, South Chungcheong Province, the Hansan Ramie Fabric Cultural Festival continues the tradition of Hansan ramie fabric, a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The three-day festival starts Friday and ends Sunday. Visitors can try weaving traditional Korean natural fabric and try on mosi clothing. Programs and events include a fashion show, designer competition and more. Further details of the festival can be found at

TravelJune 11, 2021

[Around the Hotels] Promotions and Packages

Sheraton Grand Incheon Hotel celebrates World Environment Day Sheraton Grand Incheon Hotel in Songdo has partnered with social venture Tree Planet to raise awareness of environmental protection. “Green Project” will see the hotel plant one tree at a restoration forest in Gangwon Province per each companion tree bought by guests through the hotel. Each tree planted in the forest will be imprinted with the owner’s name. All hotel guests can participate in the project and rece

FoodJune 11, 2021

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (US) Opened June 3 Horror Directed by Michael Chaves In 1981, 8-year-old boy David Glatzel (Julian Hilliard), possessed by a demon, stabs his father’s leg. Demonologists Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) try to help the boy but it is not easy. During an exorcism, Arne Johnson (Ruairi O’Connor), boyfriend of David’s sister, invites the demon to enter his body instead of David’s. Cruella (US) Opened May 26 Drama

FilmJune 11, 2021

[#WeFACE] Artists warn looming climate crisis through data-driven projects

Artists from different parts of the globe joined Herald Corp.’s first H.eco Forum on Thursday to showcase their artistic approach in responding to the looming climate crisis and to communicate with the public through data. Five artists came together from different time zones for an hourlong session to present their experimental works of art from “Heartbeat of the Earth.” The series was created in collaboration with the Google Arts & Culture Lab and the United Nations Frame

CultureJune 10, 2021

Sejong Center's Hong Kong Week event postponed to 2023

The “Hong Kong Week 2021@Seoul” event will be pushed back by two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts announced Wednesday. The change in schedule comes as the art center failed to get a green light from the government in February to have visiting artists from Hong Kong exempted from mandatory self-quarantine measures. The decision to postpone the event was made last week, an official from the Sejong Center said. The postponement was necess

CultureJune 9, 2021

[Herald Interview] Digital artist Cody Choi questions nature of ‘digital art’

When PKM Gallery showed Cody Choi’s “Database Painting Series 1 - Stolen Data, Tiger #00” at the Art Basel Hong Kong 2021 in March, it was a long-awaited moment for the artist who began “database painting” in 1997. He had to wait a long time for people to pay attention to digital art, he said. “Not many people were interested in digital art until recently when NFT seems to have inspired interest in digital art,” Choi said during an interview with The

Arts & DesignJune 9, 2021

[Feature] NFT art shakes up Korean art market

When it was recently announced that NFT-based artworks by Korean modern art masters -- Kim Whan-ki, Park Soo-keun and Lee Jung-seop -- would go on the block at an online auction, the Korean art industry was bewildered. The families and foundations raised copyright issues, claiming that they owned the original works and had never given the rights for those works to be minted as nonfungible token artworks. Minting refers to the process of tokenizing an asset and once an artwork is minted, it bec

Arts & DesignJune 9, 2021

[Herald interview] Yu Jun-sang is ready for show about death

“Beetlejuice” tells a fun, humorous and exciting story about loneliness and death, said actor Yu Jun-sang who plays the eponymous character in the Korean-language version of the musical. Yu, who deftly moves between the small screen, the silver screen and the stage, plays the iconic Beetlejuice character, a green haired ghost who has been in existence for 9.8 billion years and is obsessed with life. Wishing to befriend a couple who recently became ghosts in an accidental death, h

PerformanceJune 9, 2021

Coldplay unveils 'Higher Power' music video featuring Korean dance company

British rock band Coldplay has unveiled a music video for its new song "Higher Power" featuring South Korean dance group Ambiguous Dance Company. The 4 minute, 16 second clip, uploaded on the band's official YouTube channel on Tuesday (local time), shows lead singer Chris Martin dancing alongside members of the Korean dance group. The music video by award-winning director Dave Meyers is a short science-fiction film set in a devastated future city. The dancers appear as hologram image

PerformanceJune 9, 2021

Coex Urban Park festival to send message of hope amid pandemic

Public art festival Coex Urban Park will kick off Wednesday for a four-day run, aiming to send a message of hope to people suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the theme of “Blossom the Hope,” the event was organized by the Gangnam-gu Office and members of the Coex Mice Cluster, a group consisting of Coex, the Korea International Trade Association and 14 companies. Public works or art, exhibitions and other activities will be held at multiple locations near the World Trade

Arts & DesignJune 8, 2021

Rare Korean films from Japanese colonial era restored

Korean short films made during the Japanese colonial period can now be viewed online. Four short films -- “Geulloui Kkeuteneun Ganani Eopda,” “Ondol,” “Gyeongseongsosik” and “Manjueseoui Jeontu” -- discovered through KOFA’s Cinematheque KOFA Restoration project were converted into a digital format and made available on the Korean Classic Film YouTube channel and Korean Film Archive’s KMDb website. The 19-minute film titled “Geu

FilmJune 8, 2021

Lotte Cinema to raise ticket prices again from July

Bad news for moviegoers -- watching films will get more expensive at Lotte cinemas from July 1 onwards. The ticket prices are going up by 1,000 won, six months after the multiplex chain raised fees in December, claiming the move was necessary to keep the business afloat amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Moviegoers who want to watch 2D films at Lotte cinemas will now have to pay 13,000 won for their tickets during weekdays and 14,000 won on weekends. “We are sorry to announce the change in o

FilmJune 8, 2021

S. Korea's 11 intl. film fests call for release of Myanmar filmmaker

South Korea's 11 international film festivals on Tuesday called for the release of a Myanmar filmmaker who was recently arrested in the military-controlled Southeast Asian country. "The festivals strongly condemn the ongoing violence in Myanmar and urge the release of the producer, Ma Aeint," the 11 organizations led by the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) said in a statement. "Furthermore, we ask all the related authorities to protect her safety and civil rights fairly.&

FilmJune 8, 2021