The third annual Culture Communication Forum organized by the Corea Image Communication Institute will bring leading cultural figures together in Seoul in September.Vladimir Tolstoy, director of the Leo Tolstoy Museum estate; Dominique Wolton, research director of the French National Centre for Scientific Research; Hermann Parzinger, president of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation; Geradine Doogue, ABC Australia journalist and Yi Sun-kyung, a Canadian filmmaker and writer, are among those

May 28, 2012

 An Israeli man says he wants to divorce his wife because she refuses to part with her 550 cats.The man, whose name was not reported, petitioned the Rabbinical Court in Beersheba for divorce from his cat-loving wife this week, The Times of Israel, Jerusalem, reported Sunday.He told the court he was unable to sleep in the couple's bedroom because his wife's hundreds of cats were constantly sleeping

May 28, 2012

Deoksu Palace art museum reopens with exhibition of works by key modern painter Lee In-sungThe reopening of the National Museum of Contemporary Art branch at Deoksu Palace last week after three-months of renovations is being marked with a rare exhibition on Korean modern art. The exhibition of works by one of the key modern artists in Korea, Lee In-sung, celebrates the centennial of Lee’s birth, shedding new light on Lee’s short life during the Japanese colonial era. Some 75 paintings and 200 hi

May 27, 2012

Belgian-born professor says Jogye Order’s rigid  stance has left internal conflicts unresolvedFor Sem Vermeersch, associate professor of religious studies at Seoul National University, this year means a lot. The Belgian scholar, one of the leading academics in Korean studies, has been studying ancient Korean Buddhism for 20 years, particularly during the Goryeo Kingdom (918-1392) which was strongly attached to the political system of the time. Speaking with The Korea Herald at his office at Kyuj

May 25, 2012

When major sports brands opened registration for their marathon events earlier this month, some saw their websites crash as thousands of people tried to register online at once. New Balance increased the number of participants for its 2012 New Race, scheduled for June 10, from 5,000 last year to 15,000 this year in response to the growing popularity of marathons in the country. When this week’s nike Women’s 7K Race opened registration last month, its 7,000 places were quickly filled, closing reg

May 25, 2012

The World Heritage Map, released each year in English by UNESCO World Heritage Centre in Paris, has been published in Korean for the first time by the Korean National Commission for UNESCO (KNCU).  The world map points out a total of 936 world heritage sites around the world, including 10 sites in Korea such as Changdeokgung in Seoul and Bulguk Temple in Gyeongju. A total of 30,000 copies have been printed and distributed to more than 200 locations in Korea, including the World Heritage sites an

May 24, 2012

 Artist highlights writers’ artistic agonies and sufferings mixed with his ownThe multi-talented British artist Billy Childish sheds new light on two prominent Korean writers of Korea’s modern literature, Yi Kwang-su and Yi Sang, at his first exhibition in Seoul. “I wanted to make some paintings that related directly to the people who would be coming to see the exhibition,” Childish said at the opening event for his exhibition “Strange Bravery” in Seoul on May 11.Studying the two writers’ litera

May 23, 2012

A travel booklet illustrating Korean culture won a design award in the United States earlier this month. The Korea Tourism Organization’s booklet featuring photos introducing the charms of Korea received a gold medal in the travel brochure category of the ASTRID Design Excellence Awards, the tourism organization said on Monday. The annual awards, founded in 1987, recognize companies and government agencies that have achieved higher standards of quality in design and communication in fields rangi

May 21, 2012

Photo exhibition gives views of the capital from colonial times to 1960Photos showcasing the most turbulent times in modern Korea are on public display at Seoul Museum of History.The photo exhibition “Seoul in Turbulence: As Seen by the AP” features vivid images taken by the Associated Press during the tumultuous days of Japanese colonial rule and the Korean War to the April 19 revolution, the nation’s first upheaval for democracy.While government censorship was imposed on domestic media, the fo

May 20, 2012

(Yonhap Photo)Research indicates students in college can have as good a time at a party if they don't drink, U.S. researchers suggest.Lori Scott-Sheldon of the Miriam Hospital in Providence, R.I., analyzed data on 19 studies involving more than 1,400 U.S. college students.The study, published in the journal Psychology of Addictive Behavior, found students were less likely to drink alcohol when the

May 17, 2012

Seoul Arts Center, one of the country’s biggest art complexes, will heighten its public role this year by expanding support for artists and low-income families, its new president said on Tuesday.Mo Cheol-min, who took the top post at SAC last month, said the center located in southern Seoul will cut all venue rental fees by 5 percent and adopt a standardized seating list to prohibit production companies from raising ticket prices by assigning premium seats. “To establish a fair system of ticket

May 16, 2012

Ven. Seongho accuses president of the nation’s largest Buddhist sect of soliciting prostitutionJogye Order, South Korea’s largest Buddhist sect, was plunged further into turmoil after a whistleblower monk accused the order’s president of procuring prostitution.Ven. Seongho, who last week exposed an all-night gambling and drinking party among his fellow monks, made the new allegations targeted, this time, at Most Ven. Jaseung, president of the Jogye Order. The whistle-blower said on a radio show

May 16, 2012