Spectacular journey to Alessandro Michele’s world of imagery at ‘Gucci Garden Archetypes’

In celebration of the 100th anniversary of Italian fashion brand Gucci’s founding last year, the fashion house has recreated its creative vision and legacy through “Gucci Garden Archetypes,” an immersive and multi-sensory space curated by its creative director Alessandro Michele. Starting with its first showcase in Florence, the traveling exhibition has landed in Seoul, its sixth stop. As mentioned in Michele’s description of the exhibition, the immersive multimedia worl

March 3, 2022

Photographs evoke nostalgia for travel

If you feel like traveling abroad, but have to wait a few more months for the pandemic to subside, a couple of photography exhibitions in town might help you quench your thirst for going abroad. The show “Accidentally Wes Anderson” at Groundseasaw Seongsu in Seoul is a photography exhibition created in collaboration with a global travel community named “Accidentally Wes Anderson,” founded in 2017. Some 300 photographs taken around the world take visitors to all parts

March 1, 2022

Lee Sook-kyung aims to bring Gwangju Biennale to transnational realm next year

Lee Sook-kyung, artistic director of the 14th Gwangju Biennale, will bring a transnational perspective to South Korea’s largest biennale, while maintaining the spirit of Gwangju, a city where the legacy of the 1980 Gwangju Uprising is indelibly etched. Appointed in December as the artistic director for next year’s Gwangju Biennale, Lee is a senior curator of international art at the Tate Modern. “I will reconstruct the ‘spirit of Gwangju’ through a contemporary

Feb. 28, 2022

Lee Jung-jae chosen as global ambassador for Fall-Winter Seoul Fashion Week

Actor Lee Jung-jae has been chosen as the global ambassador for the 2022 Fall-Winter Seoul Fashion Week, according to the show’s organizer, the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Lee will represent two local brands, Eenk and Caruso, and appear in a promotional YouTube video that is slated to be released Friday. The 2022 F/W Seoul Fashion Week will be held March 18-23 in an online-offline hybrid format. It will mark the first time in three years the fashion show will take place offline amid

Feb. 28, 2022

Exhibition showcases how pandemic has reshaped mobility

The exhibition “To you: Move Toward Where You Are” at Arko Art Center in Seoul touches on how the pandemic has influenced the concept of mobility as the yearslong pandemic continues to reduce physical mobility in our daily lives. A total of eight emerging artists and collectives have joined the exhibition; half of those artists are in their 20s or early 30s. Most of the works were newly commissioned for the exhibition with an aim to offer more opportunities to talented young artis

Feb. 28, 2022

Korean-Finnish artist duo Nana & Felix tells lesser-known sides of Seoul

Korean-Finnish artist duo Nana & Felix have picked up photographs of families, someone’s childhood or Christianity quotes kept in a frame from urban detritus. Once considered cherished memories, they were left behind for some reason, probably when people move out of cities. The artists found nearly 200 frames over the past several years in South Korea. At the center of the exhibition hall at Posco Art Museum in Seoul is the photography installation “Camera, Cigarette, Whiskey,

Feb. 26, 2022

Youn Bum-mo reappointed as director of MMCA

Youn Bum-mo, former director of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Korea, has been appointed to carry on at his post at the MMCA, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced Friday. Youn’s second three-year term starts Friday and runs until 2025, according to the announcement. With an attempt to promote Korean arts in the global scene, Youn has been working with various domestic and global projects. During his previous term, the director published “K

Feb. 25, 2022

[From the Scene] Latest in home furnishings, decorations at Seoul Living Design Fair

With the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, life for many has come to a standstill. As people spend more time at home, a growing number of them have turned their eyes to home furnishings and decorations. When South Korea’s daily coronavirus cases hit an all-time high of 171,452 on Wednesday, hundreds visited the Seoul Living Design Fair, the country’s largest annual exhibition for interior and household-related brands, which kicked off its five-day run on the same day at Coex in southern

Feb. 24, 2022

Busan Biennale to open in early September with theme of port city's history

Busan Biennale 2022 will kick off Sept. 3 across Busan with the theme of “We, on the Rising Wave,” exploring the history of the port city located at the southeastern tip of the country. The 65-day biennale will be led by artistic director Kim Hae-ju, a former deputy director of Art Songe Center, who participated in Busan Biennale 2006. The biennale will look into how the country’s second largest city has evolved, according to the Busan Biennale Organizing Committee on Wednesd

Feb. 23, 2022

'Colors make me move'

Painter Toh Yun-hee remembers things by their colors. The artist does not hesitate to say it is the colors she encounters that motivate her to paint on a canvas. When the colors become linked to her memories, occasions –- or even sentences -- that remain in her mind, they are expressed as paintings. Toh has unveiled 41 new paintings at Gallery Hyundai in Seoul, the leading commercial art gallery in South Korea. The show titled “Berlin” is her second at the gallery, after &ldq

Feb. 22, 2022

Choe U-ram named winner of MMCA Hyundai Motor Series 2022

Installation artist Choe U-ram was selected as the artist for the MMCA Hyundai Motor Series 2022, an annual project organized by the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea to support established Korean artists. Choe is known for kinetic sculptures known as “anima-machines” that combine the realms of art and science, which he has explored since the early 1990s. The kinetic installations created with stainless steel, robotics and acrylic show how humans’ desire i

Feb. 22, 2022

[Photo News] The Blonds close out New York Fashion Week

A model walks the runway for The Blonds fashion show during New York Fashion Week. The Blonds Fall/Winter 2022 collection is modeled at Spring Studios during New York Fashion Week on Wednesday, Feb. 16. Many famous stars, including Adam Lambert, Paris Hilton and Megan Fox attended the show. David and Phillipe Blond have designed iconic costumes for many household names in the music industry, including Katy Perry, Madonna, Rihanna, and Britney Spears. They are famous for their exotic designs and

Feb. 19, 2022

Christopher Koo appointed as chairman of Kiaf Seoul organizing committee

The organizing committee of international art fair Kiaf Seoul has appointed Koo Ja-yeol, also known as Christopher Koo, as its new chairman. He succeeds Bahk Byong-won, who has led the committee since 2013. Koo, who is also chairman of the Korea International Trade Association, will oversee the direction of the committee and take charge of public activities, including building relationships with enterprises, according to Kiaf Seoul. Koo was appointed chairman of KITA in February 2021 for a th

Feb. 17, 2022

Ha Chong-hyun continues fight as artist, unveils new ‘Post-Conjunction’ series

When Ha Chong-hyun appeared at the press conference for his solo exhibition at Kukje Gallery on Tuesday, the 86-year-old artist evidenced the longevity of his distinct artistic style, some 50 years after he debuted his signature painting series “Conjunction. When unveiling his “Post-Conjunction” series at the solo exhibition, the leading Korean contemporary artist recommitted to his “war against oil paints and burlap canvas.” This “war” began in the

Feb. 16, 2022

Up-and-coming Korean fashion brands promoted at NYFW

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Creative Content Agency held “Concept Korea NY 2022 F/W” online Wednesday, as part of programs scheduled for New York Fashion Week to promote emerging Korean designers overseas. The Culture Ministry and KOCCA launched Concept Korea in 2010 in tandem with New York Fashion Week. It provides an opportunity to show local brands’ collections at NYFW every season. The latest edition introduced three brands -- Nohant, Ul:kin and

Feb. 16, 2022

Interdisciplinary artist touches on history of marginalized people

Strongly believing that visual art has power to influence the human condition, UK-based interdisciplinary artist Hong Young-in has been exploring ways to contribute to the society as an artist. The exhibition “Young In Hong: We Where” at PKM Gallery is Hong’s first solo show after presenting her work at the 2019 Korea Artist Prize organized by the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea. Born in 1972, Hong studied at Seoul National University and Goldsmiths Co

Feb. 15, 2022

Gallery Hyundai to launch NFT art platform ‘ETNAH’ in March

Gallery Hyundai, a major commercial art gallery in South Korea, plans to launch a non-fungible token-based art platform called ETNAH, that will feature digital works by renowned domestic and overseas artists. ETNAH will have a three-month test run starting May and be officially launched in August. Do Hyung-teh, president of the gallery, has formed AIT as a startup to launch the NFT art platform in collaboration with Andrew Ku, CEO of ALTAVA Group -- an IT company based in Seoul and Singapore

Feb. 13, 2022

High fashion brands foray into F&B in a bid to lure shoppers

High-end European fashion brands have opened stores serving food and beverages to satiate Korean consumers‘ voracious appetites for luxury goods and fine dining experiences. Swiss watchmaker Breitling opened its largest boutique to date in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, earlier this month. The opening has accelerated the brand’s move into new offerings that go beyond its core watchmaking business, according to Breitling Korea officials. While Hannam-dong is known as a trendy distric

Feb. 12, 2022

Two Korean artists to show at Venice Biennale's main exhibition

Two Korean interdisciplinary artists -- Lee Mi-re and Jeong Geum-hyung -- will participate in the main exhibition of the upcoming Venice Biennale in April, which will take place at the Central Pavilion and Arsenale. Lee and Jeon are among 213 artists from 58 countries who were invited to join the international exhibition, the main exhibition of the biennale where 80 countries will also showcase works through their national pavilions. Among the artists participating in the international exhibit

Feb. 12, 2022

Not only for special occasions: Exhibition highlights daily use of hanbok, Korean traditional attire

An exhibition that underlines the daily use of Korea traditional clothing, hanbok, launched on Wednesday in Seoul. The exhibition, co-hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sports and Korea Craft & Design Foundation, introduces uniforms created by hanbok designers Kwon Hye-jin of Hyeon, Kim Nan-hee of Dolsilnai, Baek Dahami of Daham Hanbok, Hwang Sun-tae of Hanbok Moon, Shin Sang-hwa as well as You Eun-chae, a college student whose hanbok design received an award last year. &ldqu

Feb. 10, 2022