Some 1,500 cyclists participate in Samcheok bicycle festival

The Around Samcheok 2018 Trek Ride Fest concluded Sunday with over 1,500 participants pedaling around the beautiful scenery across Samcheok, Gangwon Province.The noncompetitive bicycle race took place around the most renowned tourist spots in the city. Riders could choose between a 138-kilometer “challenge” course and a 42-kilometer “accompanying” course. Participants of the Around Samcheok 2018 Trek Ride Fest cycle during the event in Samcheok, Gangwon Province, Sunday. (Emerson K Partners)The

CultureMay 2, 2018

Through her eyes

Seoul International Women’s Film Festival shines light on gender issues through women-led filmsThis year’s annual film festival of movies made by women, about women and for women will seek to touch on gender-related social issues prominent across Korean society today.Organizers of the 20th Seoul International Women’s Film Festival held a press conference Wednesday to introduce films to be shown at the event, while announcing that this year’s topic will be digital sexual violence, the #MeToo move

FilmMay 2, 2018

Violinist Lee Ji-yoon made youngest lifetime-tenure concertmaster at Staatskapelle Berlin

Korean violinist Lee Ji-yoon has been granted lifetime tenure as concertmaster of Staatskapelle Berlin, officials of a local cultural foundation said Wednesday.  Violinist Lee Ji-yoon (Lee's official website)Founded in 1570, Staatskapelle Berlin has been led by numerous internationally acclaimed conductors including Wilhelm Furtwangler and Herbert von Karajan, who was succeeded by Daniel Barenboim in 1992.Officials from the Kumho Asiana Cultural Foundation confirmed Wednesday that the Berlin-bas

PerformanceMay 2, 2018

iKON to hold fan meeting, celebrate 1,000 days

K-pop boy band iKON will hold a fan meeting to celebrate 1,000 days since the group’s debut, YG Entertainment said Wednesday.IKON debuted on Sept. 15, 2015 with digital single “My Type.” June 10 will mark the 1,000th day, just a day after the scheduled fan meeting event titled “iKON 2018 Private Stage Kolorful.”  (YG Entertainment)After releasing the group’s first full-length studio album in November 2015, iKON made a long-awaited return with its second studio album “Return” in January. The albu

PerformanceMay 2, 2018

S.M. Entertainment to open new culture space ‘SMTown Museum’ Friday

SMTown Museum, a new cultural exhibition space launched by K-pop powerhouse S.M. Entertainment, will open at SMTown Coex Artium in Gangnam, southern Seoul, Friday. According to the agency Wednesday, SMTown Museum will be on the third floor of SMTown Coex Artium, a compound featuring content related to S.M. musicians.Among the facilities in the new space are “S.M. Archive,” where visitors can enjoy S.M. artists’ albums, photo shoots, music and videos; “Special Exhibition,” an exhibition of the ar

CultureMay 2, 2018

Pucca aims to be ‘Mickey Mouse of Asia’ with CJ E&M

Popular animation character Pucca is to off to a new start, partnering with media mogul CJ E&M. Pucca, created by Korean company VOOZ, is an internationally known animation character. Designed with an image of an Asian girl, the red-and-black character is active, energetic and bold, not hesitating to express her affection for ninja Garu. Pucca (VOOZ)Pucca, as a brand, marked $90 million in royalty profit over the past 10 years. More than 90 percent of the profit was generated overseas. According

TelevisionMay 2, 2018

[Video] Ryan Reynolds visits Korea for ‘Deadpool 2’

The wisecracking mercenary superhero Deadpool is not too different from Ryan Reynolds, said the actor who plays the character at a press conference in Seoul Wednesday.The actor visited Korea to promote “Deadpool 2,” the sequel to the Marvel superhero film “Deadpool” released in 2016. The second installment is set for a world premiere in Korean theaters on May 16. “I would say we‘re a pretty close match,” Reynolds told reporters of his character at a hotel in central Seoul. “The only difference,

FilmMay 2, 2018

BTS to reappear on ‘Ellen’ later in May

BTS will return to “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” later in the month to entertain the American audience once again, around the time the band is set to fire up fans with a performance at the Billboard Music Awards.Big Hit Entertainment on Wednesday confirmed earlier reports that the boy band will appear on the popular US talk show, although it added the exact date has yet to be determined.  (Yonhap)It was reported via a US news outlet that BTS will appear on the show on May 25 to perform its upcoming

PerformanceMay 2, 2018

[Home Cooking] Tofu salad

This simple salad with boiled tofu is a great addition to your spring salad list! Koreans commonly enjoy boiled or pan-fried tofu with a soy dipping sauce, called yangnyeomjang. The tofu and the sauce are usually all you need, but you can turn it into a healthier salad dish by adding a spring salad mix. You can also use baby spinach, arugula, or any other salad vegetables.The good old Korean yangnyeomjang (soy dipping sauce) deliciously complements the nutty tofu and slightly peppery and bitter

FoodMay 1, 2018

Pursuing ‘permissible’ beauty in Korea

Cosmetics tycoon Elizabeth Arden once said, “To be beautiful is the birthright of every woman,” rewriting the mantra of the beauty industry in the early 20th century.Half a century later, not every woman is yet able to enjoy the right to be beautiful, restricted by personal and social boundaries. Take for example Muslim women in Korea. Their choices of cosmetics, limited by their religious faith, are further narrowed by an unchanging, conservative Korean market.  Korean cosmetics stores line the

CultureMay 1, 2018

Crush to embark on first Asian tour in June

K-pop solo artist Crush will embark on his first Asian tour in June, according to his agency, Amoeba Culture.The singer will kick off the tour in Bangkok on June 3, and later visit Hong Kong and Taiwan on June 29 and July 1, respectively. His huge international following, which he built with hits like “Oasis” and “Beautiful,” has enabled the tour, which also marks his first Asian concerts, the agency said.   (Amoeba Culture)The R&B artist debuted in 2014 with “Sometimes,” and gained popularity w

PerformanceMay 1, 2018

[Herald Interview] Park Ki-young’s motherhood, power of empathy

It was one of those beautiful spring mornings where everything on the street sparkled under the warm sunlight. Stepping into a small and cozy coffee shop located in Hapjeong-dong in Seoul, this reporter was greeted by an unusually warm smile and handshake from singer-songwriter Park Ki-young, who celebrates her 20th anniversary in the business this year.  “I think my biggest strength is that I have the ability to empathize. I can closely relate to others’ problems, thinking, ‘How can I make that

PerformanceMay 1, 2018

Scottish Ballet returns with ‘Hansel and Gretel’

The last time the Scottish Ballet performed in Seoul was in 1992 as part of the cultural entourage accompanying Prince Charles and Princess Diana.After more than a quarter of century, Scottish Ballet, led by artistic director Christopher Hampson, will perform its adaptation of the Brothers Grimm tale “Hansel and Gretel” at the LG Arts Center from May 23 to May 27. Scottish Ballet's "Hansel and Gretel" (LG Arts Center)The Glasgow-based ballet company’s “Hansel and Gretel,” which premiered in 2013

PerformanceMay 1, 2018

K-Will confirms May 10 release

Vocalist K-Will confirmed that he will release a new single on May 10.The singer’s agency Starship Entertainment released a teaser image of “The 4th Album Part 2. #1 Will be a start,” on its homepage, with the message that it will be released at 6 p.m. on May 10.As the name suggests, the single is the first segment of the three-part project for part-two of his fourth studio album. K-Will will release two more singles after “Will be a start,” which will complete the second part. The singer releas

PerformanceMay 1, 2018

Korea’s angry young men and women in Jeonju cinema competition

The Korean competition at the 19th Jeonju International Film Festival has taken a youthful turn. According to festival organizers, much of the focus of the 10 Korean films competing this year is on the “anger and deprivation of young people,” even as Korean independent cinema itself can be seen evolving and maturing.What you won’t find in this year’s local competition are the dysfunctional -- but still happy, or at least together -- families of previous years. The spotlight has shifted to damage

FilmApril 30, 2018

Artday to hold April auction

Herald Artday, a subsidiary of Herald Corp., is holding an online auction from April 28 to May 2, presenting works of art by contemporary Korean artists. 　The art auction will feature some 150 artworks by renowned artists, including Soe Seung-won, Ha In-doo, Choi Young-rim, Oh Syng-yoon, Yoon Jung-sik and others.  “Untitled” by Lee Kun-yong (Herald Artday)The collection also includes the country’s first-generation performance and conceptual artist Lee Kun-yong’s “Untitled.” Bidding and auction s

Arts & DesignApril 30, 2018

Seoul Mediacity Biennale to become public-oriented festival

Seoul Museum of Art aims to offer platforms where the public, artists and experts can actively engage on the same footing in the 2018 Seoul Mediacity Biennale, which is slated to kick off on Sept. 6 and run through Nov. 18.“Instead of the museum talking to the public about the exhibition topic, the relation has to be bilateral. In preparing the biennale, we had to think about the ways in which we do not silence or overwhelm the public,” emphasized Hong Gi-bin, a political economist and one of si

Arts & DesignApril 30, 2018

Cho Yong-pil’s 50th anniversary celebrated in Times Square

An advertisement celebrating Korean “King of Pop” Cho Yong-pil’s 50th anniversary has been screened in Times Square, New York. Cho’s three fan clubs, Eternally, Club Mizi and The Great Birth, said Monday that they jointly raised money to celebrate the singer’s 50th anniversary by putting up an advertisement at the major commercial intersection in Manhattan.  (Yonhap)Alongside a picture of him playing the guitar, the advertisement reads, “Cho Yong Pil: The K-Pop Legend. Celebrating the 50th anniv

PerformanceApril 30, 2018

Korea to join hands with ASEAN, CIS countries to boost Hallyu

In a bid to further spread Korean pop culture throughout the world, Korea will seek cultural exchanges with other countries, including members of ASEAN and CIS, the state-run agency promoting Korean culture said Monday.Korean Culture and Information Service announced its strategies aimed at boosting Hallyu or Korean Wave, referring to the popularity of Korean entertainment and culture in other parts of the world. Director of Korea Culture and Information Service Kim Tae-hoon speaks during a pres

CultureApril 30, 2018

Hwang Chi-yeul’s face hangs in Times Square

Just for a day, K-pop singer Hwang Chi-yeul became one of the most-viewed faces in the Big Apple as an advertisement for his second EP was screened in Times Square.According to his agency How Entertainment, an advertisement for Hwang’s EP “Be Myself” was put on the 32-story Thomson Reuters Building at the world-famous intersection in New York from 6 a.m. until Saturday to 2 a.m. Hwang’s fans commissioned the ad. Hwang Chi-yeul‘s ad in Times Square, New York (How Entertainment)Along with the titl

PerformanceApril 30, 2018