Hong Kong-based Villepin shows Kang Myong-hi's works in Seongsu-dong

Hong Kong-based gallery Villepin dusted off paintings by Korean artist Kang Myong-hi spanning from her early works from the 1970s to more recent ones for an exhibition in Seoul. Founded by former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin and his son Arthur, the gallery opened in 2019 in Hong Kong. During his time as a diplomat, Dominique regularly met with artists from across the globe and Arthur grew up surrounded by them. The father and son's relationship with Kang dates back three deca

Nov. 19, 2023

Shanghai art scene puts on fair show while struggling to recover from pandemic

SHANGHAI – International visitors returned to Shanghai’s West Bund, located on the west bank of the Huangpu River that runs north to south through Shanghai, where the 10th edition of the West Bund Art & Design fair took place from Nov. 9 through Sunday. The city’s flagship art fair and one of the leading art events in all of China, taking place at the West Bund Art Center and West Bund Dome, drew the participation of some 190 galleries, including Gagosian, Hauser&Wi

Nov. 15, 2023

British interdisciplinary artist Jane Benson turns literary texts into art

British interdisciplinary artist Jane Benson applies her systematic interventions into existing works of literature and art. She interprets, combines and collapses sentences from written works, which are then created into other forms of art. At the exhibition “Dodo Note...” at Gallery Shilla in Seoul which closed Sunday, the artist unveiled new works that encompass several different forms of art -- from sculptures, sound, drawings and prints to installations. Benson took sentences fr

Nov. 14, 2023

Korea Artist Prize returns after overhaul

The Korea Artist Prize has returned after the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea pledged to improve the 11-year-old annual artist award, strengthening the judge system and curation in order to present finalist artists’ practices in a deeper and more holistic way. The four artists who were announced as finalists for the prize -- Kwon Byung-jun, Gala Porras-Kim, Lee Kang-seung and Jun So-jung – unveiled their recent works at the exhibition, “Korea Artist Prize

Nov. 10, 2023

Jun So-jung transcends borders, time, space at Barakat Contemporary

Artist Jun So-jung engages in many different art genres from sculptures, sound to digital art, transcending time and borders. At Barakat Contemporary in Seoul where her solo exhibition is being held through Jan. 4, 2024, the artist crosses seamlessly between the virtual world and reality. The exhibition “Overtone,” the artist’s first solo show at the gallery, features her new three-channel video that documents the journey of Park Soon-a, a Korean Japanese gayageum player who ha

Nov. 10, 2023

Without light, Lightwalk will not be architecture: Dominique Perrault

Gangnam Intermodal Transit Center is more than just an underground transportation station that will house three high-speed train lines and two subway stations in southern Seoul. For acclaimed architect Dominique Perrault, it is more of a social project. “It is not a project to build an underground tunnel. Architecture is part of culture. The space should be a quality public space where people want to come, not a damp and dark underground space,” the architect said in an interview wit

Nov. 6, 2023

Define Seoul beckons Seongsu-dong hipsters with art, design

The inaugural design and art fair, Define Seoul, kicked off Wednesday, bringing together some 25 galleries and design brands from home and abroad in Seongsu-dong, one of the trendiest neighborhoods in Seoul, home to hip cafes, intriguing pop-up stores and shops. “Seoul is garnering unprecedented international recognition as one of the major art centers. Define Seoul encapsulates the idea of connecting design and fine art while redefining the way we perceive and engage with art,” said

Nov. 2, 2023

[Herald Interview] Swiss collector Uli Sigg sees contemporary Korean art as part of global mainstream

To Swiss art collector, businessperson and former diplomat Uli Sigg, who is known for having an extensive private collection of contemporary Chinese art, collecting art in a meaningful way allows one to understand a society, and collectors supporting artists and museums enables them to develop and function better. “The most important quality a collector has to build is to find a focus that will distinguish a collection from a mere accumulation of works. I collect artworks as I find this th

Oct. 30, 2023

Architect Dominique Perrault's 'Lightwalk' displayed at French Embassy in Seoul

World-renowned architect Dominique Perrault unveiled details of an ongoing project at Seoul’s Gangnam Intermodal Transit Center at an exhibition held at the French Embassy in Seoul on Thursday. The exhibition centers around a newly published book that introduces the history and implications of the transit center at the heart of Seoul, which will become the largest underground station in the world. “The 'Lightwalk' will bring a change to the history of underground space in S

Oct. 27, 2023

Italian architect Franco Mancuso donates archives on Korean Pavilion at Venice Biennale

Italian architect Franco Mancuso has donated nearly 4,000 documents related to the Korean Pavilion of the Venice Biennale to the Arts Council Korea (Arko). The architect had gathered the documents as he undertook the design of the pavilion together with Korean architect Kim Seok-chul, who has since died. Arko, the commissioner of the Korean pavilion, runs the 26th national pavilion in Giardini located on the eastern edge of Venice. Opened in 1995 as the last national pavilion at the biennale, it

Oct. 26, 2023

Silversmith William Lee wins Craft Prize 2023

Silversmith William Lee is the winner of this year's Craft Prize, an annual craft award given by the Culture Ministry and the Korea Craft and Design Foundation. Lee, based in Seoul, studied silversmithing and metalwork at Camberwell College of Arts, part of the University of London. He re-creates a form of traditional Korean ceramics with silver that features delicate flowing lines and subtle marks that appear to be melted on the surface. Lee's silver objects -- such as vessels and jar

Oct. 24, 2023

[Exclusive] Asia's Tang Contemporary Art to open first Western outpost in London

Tang Contemporary Art, one of the most influential commercial galleries in Asia, will launch a new space in London next year, its first gallery in the West after 26 years in Asia. Headquartered in Beijing, the gallery represents Chinese contemporary art masters such as Ai Weiwei, Yue Minjun and Zhao Zhao. It has presented some 80 artists, mostly from Asia, including Korean artists Paik Nam-june, Chun Kwang-young, Woo Kuk-won and Lee Diren. The gallery is currently working on the interior desig

Oct. 23, 2023

Emerging artists unveil works of enduring times at Park Seo-bo's Gizi Foundation

Standing in front of the works by Korean artists Kim Deok-han and Keem Ji-young can be a solemn experience, as the artists’ laborious effort and sincerity hit home. The exhibition “Keem&Kim’s Glowing Overlaid Hour” at Gizi Foundation’s Art Base in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, shows 11 works by the young artists whose works are created through the tedious and time-intensive process of layering colors over each other. Born in 1981, Kim applies traditional Korean lacquerin

Oct. 22, 2023

[Herald Interview] Kang Ik-joong weaves Hangeul philosophy into Spain mosaic art

MADRID -- A grand mosaic wall art installation by New York-based Korean artist Kang Ik-joong has made its Spanish debut, featuring more than 6,000 hand-drawn Korean characters on tile canvases. The 6,072 three-by-three-inch tiles, covering three walls at the Korean Cultural Center's exhibition space in the Spanish capital, were created by around 365 students studying the Korean language in Spain. They were asked to inscribe their favorite Korean phrases, or the things they know, along with

Oct. 22, 2023

[From the Scene] Kang Ik-joong's 'Things I Know' shows people's inner voices in Hangeul

MADRID -- Heavy rainfall in Madrid caused the city to declare a red alert for adverse weather conditions at 3 p.m. on Thursday. Several subway stations and city parks were shut down, but the downpour did not dampen the spirit of the crowd who had gathered to celebrate a vibrant display of art and Korean culture. About 150 people gathered at the Korean Cultural Center in Spain to attend the opening of the public installation work “Things I Know” -- a colorful series of wise words writ

Oct. 20, 2023

Galleries vexed by outdated ban on taking older artwork out of country

Hakgojae Gallery, which had hoped to present an art piece by Korean avant-garde artist Quac In-sik created 61 years ago at Frieze London, has had to abandon its plans due to the Cultural Properties Protection Law that bans the movement of historical works abroad to sell. The law requires any artifact that is at least 50 years old to be appraised to determine whether the item can leave the country. The Cultural Heritage Administration does allow for exceptions when an item is taken abroad for an

Oct. 18, 2023

'2023 Box Gallery Exhibition' by Youth Impact shows art made of discarded paper

Amid the heightened public interest in up-cycling, several young artists gathered to show works created with waste paper at the exhibition “2023 Box Gallery Exhibition: A Resounding Success in Art and Social Impact” held at the Gangnam Foundation for Arts & Culture Exhibition Hall in Yeoksam-dong, southern Seoul. The exhibition, which ran from July 27 to Aug. 10, was joined by 13 artists -- Kim Gyu-rin, Kim Su-hyun, Kim Si-yeon, Kim hye-jeong, Catherine Ryu, Park Bo-min, Park Ji-

Oct. 17, 2023

NY Met exhibition to mark 25th anniversary of Korean gallery

The Metropolitan Museum of Art will present the exhibition “Lineages: Korean Art at The Met” in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the museum’s Korean gallery, presenting 30 works of art and artifacts from the 12th century to the present. “(The exhibition) is an opportunity to reflect on the importance of presenting Korean art for The Met’s international audiences. By pairing historical with modern and contemporary artwork, the show also poses the question of

Oct. 17, 2023

[Obituary] Park Seo-bo's legacy in Korean contemporary art remembered

The news of the death of artist Park Seo-bo at 92 years old on Saturday was met with an outpouring of condolences from around the world, as people remembered Park's legacy and his contributions to the development of dansaekhwa movement. Earlier this year, Park revealed that he had been diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer. He chose not to receive treatment so that he could keep working. To continue his art, the artist said, he had decided to regard the cancer as a friend that he would live

Oct. 15, 2023

Dansaekhwa master Park Seo-bo dies at 92 from cancer

Park Seo-bo, a Korean contemporary art master, died on Saturday at the age of 92. The artist died of cancer, according to a report by Yonhap News Agency on Saturday morning. In February, Park had revealed he had been diagnosed with lung cancer. Born in 1931 in Yecheon County of North Gyeongsang Province, Park was the leader of the dansaekhwa movement, or “monochrome painting" movement, in Korea. The movement, considered internationally as unique to Korea and leading the local contempo

Oct. 14, 2023