Nature and art become one at Hansol Museum

WONJU, Gangwon Province ― Hansol Museum, home to a lifetime art collection of the founder and adviser to Hansol Group Lee In-hee, the eldest daughter of Samsung’s founding chairman Lee Byung-chul, opened its doors to the public on Wednesday. The museum attracted great attention from the public even before its opening with some big name art figures involved in the project, such as Japanese architect Tadao Ando, who designed the museum, and American artist James Turrell. Sitting next to Oak Valley

May 16, 2013

Metallica and Muse to perform at ‘Super Concert’

American heavy metal band Metallica and English alternative rock band Muse will perform at Hyundai Card Super Concert 19 Citybreak in Seoul, the credit card company said on Wednesday. Muse will perform first on Aug. 17 followed by Metallica on Aug. 18.It will be Metallica’s first appearance in Korea in seven years: The band visited the country in 1998 and 2006. For Muse, the upcoming concert will mark the band’s fifth performance in the country. Their most recent show was at the 2010 Jisan Valle

May 16, 2013

Vatican turns to art patronage roots for Venice Biennale

VATICAN CITY (AFP) ― Five centuries after Michelangelo, the Vatican has commissioned fresh works on the biblical themes of creation and chaos for a show at the prestigious Venice Biennale art festival.The exhibition explores themes from the Book of Genesis through works by artists including renowned Czech photographer Josef Koudelka ― but there are no depictions of the Madonna and Child or suffering Christs, the Vatican said Wednesday.“Creation, Un-Creation, Re-Creation” brings Koudelka together

May 15, 2013

Records fall at Sotheby’s contemporary art auction

NEW YORK (AFP) ― A painting by Barnett Newman that Sotheby’s described as an icon of Abstract Expressionism sold Tuesday in New York for a record $43.84 million at an auction peppered with stunningly expensive works.“Onement VI” consists of two vibrant blue rectangles neatly divided by a single, light blue line, an arrangement that Sotheby’s called “a portal to the sublime.”The simplicity of the design “was the core of Newman’s ambition to create paintings free of objects, dogma, precedence or r

May 15, 2013

HotSechGodRG to deliver memories of the ’90s

Project group HotSechGodRG released their first music video Tuesday through their cable channel reality show “Handsome Boys of 20th Century.” HotSechGodRG is a group formed of members from former idol groups H.O.T, Sechs Kies, g.o.d, and NRG. The music video is the group’s first project marking the creation of the group. NRG’s debut song “I Can Do It!” was picked for the music video in which the former idols salute their past by presenting a perfectly synchronized group dance, wearing orange jum

May 15, 2013

Global Icon plays up boyish charms

At first glance the five girls of Global Icon (GI), with their rainbow colored boy-cut hair and dark attire, may come off as tough and intimidating, but members Ha Yun, One Ket, Eun Ji, A I and A Ram assure that it is only in keeping with their group’s tomboy image. “Honestly, the president of our agency really wanted to form a boy band,” Ha Yun explained. “It was later decided that we would train and debut with the concept of being a boyish girl group.” On April 4 GI released its debut single “

May 15, 2013

Dance mimics modern pessimism

After American choreographer William Forsythe’s cutting-edge performance “Heterotopia” last month, Korea’s dance scene is welcoming yet another experimental work from overseas, this time by French choreographer Maguy Marin.Titled “Salves,” the dance features “pessimism that dominates today’s world,” according to its local promoters. The piece premiered in Lyon, France, in 2010, and received rave reviews from the French press.The 62-year-old is often compared to the late German choreographer Pina

May 14, 2013

K-pop veterans Shinhwa to embark on Asia tour

The longest-running Korean idol group, Shinhwa, will embark on their Asia tour in June with their upcoming album, “The Classic.” They will make stops at the Asia World Expo in Hong Kong on June 8, Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai, NK101 hall in Taipei, Makuhari Messe hall in Tokyo, MasterCard Center in Beijing and finish up at the Olympic Gymnastics Stadium in Seoul on Aug. 3 and 4.The 15-year old group will release a new album on May 16; it will be their 11th full-length album. Reservations for

May 14, 2013

FTIsland, CNBlue to rock out in Japan

The local boys of FTIsland and CNBlue are joining an all-star music line-up for this year’s Summer Sonic rock festival in Japan. The annual rock fest will be held simultaneously in Toyko and Osaka on Aug. 10 and 11 and will also include renowned headlining acts such as Metallica, Muse, Smashing Pumpkins, Earth, Wind & Fire, Pet Shop Boys and more. Summer Sonic is Japan’s largest summer international music festival and attracts around 200,000 fans during its two-day run.  FTIsland is composed of

May 14, 2013

Finding the exotic in familiar landscapes

The nature depicted by artist Kim Bo-hie looks familiar to many with common motifs such as leaves, trees and flowers. But what captures the viewers’ attention are the details ― such as an exotic-looking florescent blue lizard on a tree or colorful birds ― that bring life to her works. The exotic animals and the common natural motifs break the usual images viewers associate with nature paintings.  Her “Towards” series is a mix of the nature she saw in Jeju, Korea and foreign countries during her

May 13, 2013

Lee Hi takes first solo concert in her stride

It has been less than a year since the young 16-year-old K-pop starlet Lee Hi made her official debut as a solo singer under YG Entertainment’s wing, after gaining fame as the runner-up of the survival audition TV program “K-pop Star” season one. With the young star having released her first full studio album “First Love” earlier in the year, the only remaining feat for Lee to tackle was putting on her first solo concert performance; she can now scratch that off the list.  Lee’s first solo conce

May 13, 2013

[Announcement] Artday holds May auction on Friday

Artday, a sister company of The Korea Herald, is holding an online auction and an exhibition in conjunction with Jean Gallery and Lotte Department Store from May 17-22. The auction offers good deals on a range of works by established Korean artists such as Lee U-fan, Kim Chang-ryul, Oh Chi-gyun, Kim Young-ju, Byun Kwan-sik and Seo Sae-ok with the starting prices set 30-50 percent lower than the estimates. The auction features about 90 pieces, including 18 works by Yayoi Kusama.Those interested c

May 12, 2013

Broccoli, you too? defies indie label

The original definition of the music term “indie band” is where members of a band produce their own music independent from any large corporation or commercial record label. These bands are typically associated with the underground music scene and are often typecast as having a specific, non-mainstream sound: Hence the use of the term “indie” to describe a certain genre or style of music, even when the band itself is not truly an indie band.“We are a rock band,” members of the popular local band

May 12, 2013

Art lovers become creators at museums

Museums and galleries are not just places to view exhibitions. They could be a place for finding undiscovered talents and a source of inspiration in an otherwise routine life. And traditional hands-on art classes are evolving to meet the needs of a diverse audience such as multicultural and expatriate families. From public museums such as the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea, Seoul Museum of Art and Seoul Arts Center, to private museums like Yido Gallery and Youngen Museum of Contempor

May 10, 2013

Eyelike:Chesney surprises with ‘Life on a Rock’

Chesney surprises with ‘Life on a Rock’“Life on a Rock”Kenny Chesney(Blue Chair/Columbia Nashville)Kenny Chesney opens his new album ``Life On A Rock‘’ with the hit ``Pirate Flag,‘’ a rowdy beach-bum anthem reminiscent of his many fun-in-the-sun party songs of the last dozen years. While most of the rest of ``Life on a Rock‘’ references island life, instead of rocking out, the songs are about unplugging from the chaos of the daily grind and reflecting on quieter pleasures. Writing four songs by

May 10, 2013