NPMK shines light on short-lived crown prince of Joseon, ‘patron of arts’

An ongoing exhibition at the National Palace Museum of Korea shines a light on the life and accomplishments of Crown Prince Hyemyeong, a 19th century regent of the Joseon era (1392-1910) considered a patron of the arts who was gifted in poetry and literature. Opened last week, “Hyomyeong: Crown Prince and Patron of Arts” is being held through Sept. 22 at the museum located inside Gyeongbokgung in Seoul. The exhibition is themed around how Hyomyeong (1809-1830) worked to promote the a

June 30, 2019

[Herald Interview] Woman’s devotion revives art of silver threads

Hong Jung-sil, master of metal inlay arts, hopes for a renaissance of centuries-old craft Inside a building in southern Seoul dedicated to the government-designated national intangible cultural assets, Hong Jung-sil, 72, works, studies and teaches as one of 12 resident artisans. Her area of expertise is “ipsa,” the art of inlaying thin threads of silver, gold and other precious metals onto harder surfaces such as iron, creating exquisite decorative patterns. The craft, which dat

June 28, 2019

Culture Ministry plans to expand art infrastructure

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Monday rolled out a five-year plan to make Korean art and artifacts more accessible to the general public. The plan includes building more art galleries and museums, expanding the conservation system for the collections and creating online and mobile systems for people to acquire information on exhibitions.According to the ministry, the government plans to build an additional 140 museums and 46 art galleries by 2023, which will bring the number of s

June 24, 2019

Steamy romance novelist Judith Krantz dies at 91

LOS ANGELES -- Writer Judith Krantz, whose million-selling novels such as “Scruples” and “Princess Daisy” engrossed readers worldwide with their steamy tales of the rich and beautiful, died Saturday at her Bel-Air home. She was 91.Krantz’s son Tony Krantz, a TV executive, confirmed her death by natural causes on Sunday afternoon. He said he’d hoped to re-create the “Scruples” miniseries before her she died but it is still in the works.“She ha

June 24, 2019

Longtime Kenzo designers stage final show in Paris

PARIS -- It was quite literally the final curtain for Kenzo’s Carol Lim and Humberto Leon at Paris Fashion Week on Sunday, after the duo’s eight successful years at the creative helm of the house came to a close.With a 100-meter curtain on set, a surprise performance by singer Solange and thousands of guests in attendance, the duo’s departure was a farewell to remember.Here are some highlights from the final day of spring-summer 2020 men’s and coed collections from the Ke

June 24, 2019

Dior brings art to Paris fashion for sculpted men’s show

PARIS -- Dior brought art to Paris Fashion Week on Friday as designer Kim Jones used a monumental plaster sculpture on the runway to inspire his architectural show.Guests including Kate Moss, Christina Ricci and Kelly Osbourne marveled at the giant artwork by American artist Daniel Arsham that spelled out “DIOR” in broken up plaster with jewels surreally glimmering beneath.Here are some highlights of spring-summer 2020 menswear shows.___　 Dior goes back to past“It’s quite

June 23, 2019

Experts raise alarm over climate change threat to cultural heritage

ATHENS -- Climate change could wreak “irreversible damage” on the world’s most precious ancient monuments and other cultural sites, experts warned Saturday as they pushed for UN protection for major global sites.Academics and policy makers gathered in Athens for a meeting on the threats to world heritage called for an array of tools to predict, measure and counter the effects of climate change. They are campaigning to have the issue included on the agenda at the UN Summit for C

June 23, 2019

Acropolis Museum opens ancient Athens neighborhood site below its base

ATHENS, Greece -- Greece’s Acropolis Museum opened an excavation site underneath its modern building Friday, allowing visitors for the first time to walk through an ancient Athenian neighborhood that survived from the Classical era to Byzantine times.The museum, which sits at the foot of the Acropolis hill in Athens, houses masterpiece sculptures of Greek antiquity, including works from the Parthenon, one of the most influential buildings in Western civilization. “Visitors can come d

June 23, 2019

[Weekender] The new KFC: Korean fried chicken

With a crispy crust, juicy meat and a variety of flavors to choose from, South Korean-style deep-fried chicken seems to be the food world’s latest craze. Call it the new KFC. Korean fried chicken joints are springing up in the homeland of Kentucky Fried Chicken, drawing rave reviews from food lovers and critics. Falling hard for the East Asian fare, people even ask on Reddit, “Why is Korean fried chicken so good?” Well, it didn’t happen by chance. With a population o

June 21, 2019

[Herald Interview] Korean grandparents’ Instagram love letters to grandkids

In 2015, it seemed Lee Chan-jae had nothing much to look forward to in life. With his two grown children and three grandsons far away in the US and South Korea, the then-73-year-old Korean immigrant in Brazil spent most of his time watching Korean TV in his Sao Paulo home or passing the time at a nearby park. Then an idea from his son, worried about his empty-nester father, changed everything. At first reluctantly, Lee started to draw for his grandsons -- Arthur, Allan and Astro, whom he missed

June 21, 2019

Practicing yoga in unexpected places

Friday is a big day for yoga, as it marks the fifth International Day of Yoga.In 2014, the UN declared June 21 the International Day of Yoga, saying that the sport could contribute to development and peace. Celebrating the day, around 1,200 people gathered at Gwanghwamun Plaza on Sunday to practice yoga together. The massive yoga session at the center of Seoul drew attention to the thousands-year-old practice, which has lately seen a resurgence.Boosted by a rise in its popularity, yoga classes a

June 20, 2019

CCF 2019 to focus on content creator culture

An upcoming global forum in Seoul from June 30 to July 2 will delve into the internet content market. Culture Communication Forum 2019, an annual event organized by the Corea Image Communication Institute, invites figures from around the world to experience Korean culture and promote their own culture. Twelve “content creator” delegates have been invited this year. They are bestselling author Ito Ogawa from Japan; US pop columnist Jeff Benjamin; film director Ilya Khrzhanovskiy

June 19, 2019

Korea allows permanent overseas exhibition of cultural heritage for 1st time

The Cultural Heritage Administration has authorized two early 20th century paintings to be exhibited in Australia, marking the first time state-designated cultural heritage has been allowed to be exhibited permanently outside the country. According to the administration, a Chaekgado painting and a Lotuses painting, originally created as folding screens, were recently sold by a private owner to the National Gallery of Victoria to be exhibited in its Korean exhibition halls.After the go-ahead from

June 18, 2019

Korean Literature Showcase hopes to pave way for ‘K-literature’ trend

While the Seoul International Book Fair is set to open next week, the Korean Literature Showcase will take place from June 18 to 22 at the Coex Convention and Exhibition Center.Organized by the Korean Culture and Information Service, the event, launched last year, aims to introduce and promote Korean literature to other parts of the world.  This year, 10 overseas publishers from 10 countries who are interested in publishing translations of Korean literature are participating. Around 30 loca

June 11, 2019

Imprisoned Egyptian publisher to be awarded prize during Seoul International Book Fair

With an award recognizing an imprisoned Egyptian publisher’s struggle for freedom of the press, Seoul International Book Fair 2019 is set to open next week.The annual fair will take place June 19-23 at the Coex Convention and Exhibition Center in Gangnam, southern Seoul.　This year, the festival will highlight the importance of the freedom of the press, organizers said during a press conference Monday in central Seoul. On June 21, the International Publishers Association will award the

June 10, 2019

[Weekender] Korea’s ‘graynaissance’ stars

It seems age really is no barrier to success nowadays. A 72-year-old Korean vlogger who clumsily tries things that her granddaughter and her generation are into is an international YouTube star, with over 900,000 subscribers to her channel. On Instagram, 75-year-old grandparents post their drawings daily for grandkids, which has eventually developed into a new career for them as artists with 387,000 followers.A 63-year-old owner of a humble eatery in Siheung, Gyeonggi Province, Kim Chil-doo is n

June 7, 2019

[Eye Plus] Seoul’s sharing bikes moving up a gear

Riding a bike in Seoul has never been easy. With spider web-like tangles of roads teeming with traffic, and pedestrian areas packed with people milling about, talking and running at different speeds, the metropolitan city is still a tough place for a bike ride. Under the city of Seoul’s green transport vision, however, two-wheelers are an increasingly common sight -- and not just as last-mile mobility, but also for recreational use. At unmanned rental hubs located at subway stations a

June 6, 2019

Number of King Sejong Institutes to rise by 13 to 180

The government said Wednesday it will establish 13 new state-run King Sejong Institutes in 11 countries for foreigners wanting to learn the Korean language and culture.With the additions, the number of King Sejong Institutes, a public institution run by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to promote Korean language education and the distribution of Korean culture abroad, has increased to 180 in 60 countries worldwide, according to the ministry. The 13 new institutes were chosen from amon

June 5, 2019

Korea’s image in the eyes of the outside world

While the image of South Korean director Bong Joon-ho posing triumphantly with his Palme d’Or trophy at this year’s Cannes Film Festival is the most popular recent image of Korea on the world stage, the country’s cinema is not as well-known among foreigners as one might expect.When asked, “What Korean films have you watched?” over half the foreign respondents to a recent survey -- 51.7 percent -- said they had never seen a Korean movie. The survey, conducted between

June 4, 2019

Revelations by school bullying victims rattle K-pop industry

Three rising K-pop stars and their agencies have recently gotten into trouble following revelations that the stars bullied classmates in their school years.They are Yoo Young-hyun, member of the popular indie band Jannabi, singer Hyolyn from the now-disbanded girl group Sistar and Yoon Seo-bin, once the front-runner of the popular idol competition show "Produce 101."Behind the globally flourishing K-pop scene often characterized by electronic music, indie band Jannabi has quietly but s

May 29, 2019