Czech modern art on view for first time in Korea

The art of the Czech Republic is less well known than its literature or music, but the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea and the National Gallery in Prague have worked together to break the mold and brought a selection of 107 paintings by 28 modern Czech artists for an exhibition in Korea. “Korean museums often hold so-called ‘blockbuster’ exhibitions focusing on mainstream art of Western Europe in order to draw large a number of visitors. But as a national museum of Korea with a respon

Jan. 27, 2013

Psy garners three awards in France

K-pop sensation Psy garnered three awards at the NRJ Music Awards of France on Saturday, local time. With his international smash-hit, “Gangnam Style,” the 35-year-old star won Chanson Internationale de L’anne (International Song of the Year) and Clip de L’anne (Video Clip of the Year) and also received an Award d’honneur (honor.) He is the first Korean to be invited to the noted French ceremony held at the Cannes Festival Palace. “This is my second time in France. The first time was in Paris. A

Jan. 27, 2013

Eyelike:

A$AP Rocky is impressive on debut albumA$AP Rocky``Long.Live.A$AP‘’(RCA Records)Rapper A$AP Rocky meshes his laid-back lyrical persona with a melodic sound, delivering an impressive piece of work with just a few flaws on his debut album, ``Long.Live.A$AP.‘’ Much of the 12-track set is an easy listen with solid production from Jim Jonsin, Hit-Boy, T-Minus and Clams Casino. The 24-year-old, who hails from Harlem, N.Y., raps with abstract rhymes and metaphors that are easy to grasp on songs like ``

Jan. 25, 2013

Ailee to attend Grammy Awards

Singer Ailee will be attending the 55th Grammy Awards ceremony at Los Angeles Staples Center on Feb. 10. “Ailee was invited by the Grammy Awards Committee to participate in the VIP premiere of the Grammy Awards,” said YMC Entertainment.The starlet will walk the red carpet with producer Tony Maserati, who is nominated for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical for Jason Mraz’s album “Love is a Four Letter Word.”  Maserati has also worked with many other artists including Lady Gaga, Beyonc, Christin

Jan. 25, 2013

Ailee to attend Grammy Awards

Singer Ailee will be attending the 55th Grammy Awards ceremony at Los Angeles Staples Center on Feb. 10. “Ailee was invited by the Grammy Awards Committee to participate in the VIP premiere of the Grammy Awards,” said YMC Entertainment.The starlet will walk the red carpet with producer Tony Maserati, who is nominated for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical for Jason Mraz’s album “Love is a Four Letter Word.” Maserati has also worked with many other artists including Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Christin

Jan. 25, 2013

SNSD-themed pop-up cafe to open in time for Valentine’s Day

A pop-up cafe themed around SNSD, Girls Generation Express, will be open for 11 days around Valentine’s Day. The Rabbit in the Moon caf on Seoul’s Garosugil in Sinsa-dong will be transformed into a special SNSD-themed caf named Girls Generation Express from Feb. 7-17. It will feature some 40 items related to Girls’ Generation. Macaroons, cakes and special chocolates for Valentine’s Day, kitchenware, mug cups, customized clothes and furniture inspired by the girls will be on sale at the cafe duri

Jan. 24, 2013

Big Star looks to shine with Brave Brothers by its side

The hip-hop rookie group Big Star is the latest boy band project from legendary record producer, Brave Brothers, who has composed and produced tracks for some of the most notable acts in K-pop, including Big Bang, Sistar, T-ara, After School, U-Kiss and Hyuna’s latest solo track “Ice Cream.”However, the five members of Big Star ― Feeldog, Baram, Raehwan, Sunghak and Jude ― hope to distinguish themselves as a group that just loves to be energetic and have fun on the stage. “One of the main concep

Jan. 24, 2013

Memories of Seoul told by a native

Artist Sa Suk-won, born and raised in Seoul, has vivid memories of the city in which he grew up. In the middle of the pro-democracy protests in May 1980, Sa, who was an art college student, hid at a coffee shop in Jongno, central Seoul, from arrest. A coffee shop owner brought in a girl who was also hiding from the police and suggested a safe way out, advising that the two pretend to be a couple. Now, 53, the artist still remembers many other incidents that happened in different parts of the cit

Jan. 23, 2013

Iconic Louvre work ‘Winged Victory’ to be restored

PARIS (AFP) ― The Louvre is in September to restore one of its most iconic works, the “Winged Victory of Samothrace” statue depicting the Greek goddess Nike, the museum announced Monday.A team of experts will oversee the three-million-euro ($4 million) restoration of the ancient Greek marble statue ― one of the Paris art museum’s three best-known pieces, along with the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo.Repair work on the headless statue, which dates from between B.C. 220 and B.C. 185, is expected

Jan. 22, 2013

Hip-hoppers Tiger JK, Yoon Mi Rae and Bizzy present MFBTY

The icons of Korean hip-hop Tiger JK and Yoon Mi Rae have joined with fellow label mate rapper Bizzy to form the project group MFBTY, which stands for “My Fans’ Better Than Yours.” The trio has released their first EP as a group titled “Sweet Dream,” which features three tracks: “Sweet Dream,” “BizzyTigerYoonmirae” and “Sweet Dream (SMELLS Like Money Mix).” The group’s debut album, which was released on Monday, shows off a different side of each member, projecting a more upbeat and intense club

Jan. 22, 2013

Huh Gak and Yoo Seung-woo release ‘Mono Drama’

Singer Huh Gak has released a music video teaser for his comeback track “Mono Drama.” On Jan. 21, A Cube Entertainment released Huh’s comeback video on YouTube featuring Yoo Seung-woo, a contestant from the television talent show series, “Superstar K4.” The teaser shows behind-the-scenes footage of Huh and Yoo recording the track together.On Jan. 14, Huh, the winner of “Superstar K2,” hinted at a possible collaboration with Yoo on Twitter. He tweeted, “I finally met Yoo Seung-woo, who I worked s

Jan. 22, 2013

Huh Gak and Yoo Seung-woo releases ‘Mono Drama’

Singer Huh Gak has released a music video teaser for his comeback track “Mono Drama.” On Jan. 21, A Cube Entertainment released Huh’s comeback video on YouTube featuring Yoo Seung-woo, a contestant from the television talent show series, “Superstar K4.” The teaser shows behind-the-scenes footage of Huh and Yoo recording the track together.On Jan. 14, Huh, the winner of “Superstar K2,” hinted at a possible collaboration with Yoo on Twitter. He tweeted, “I finally met Yoo Seung-woo, who I worked s

Jan. 22, 2013

Bae Chi Gi makes chart-topping comeback

The members of the hip-hop duo Bae Chi Gi, Moo-woong and Tak, have finally released the second part of their comeback mini album, “Vol. 4 Part 2.”The mini album, released on Jan. 14, contains five songs including the duo’s chart-topping title track “Shower of Tears.” The title song ranked No. 1 on MelOn, Daum, Naver and other online music sites’ real-time charts as of Monday morning. Ranking at the top of the chart is a big-time victory for the members of Bae Chi Gi as it is the first time the b

Jan. 21, 2013

Maazel to replace Muti at Chicago Symphony’s Seoul concert

Internationally acclaimed American conductor Lorin Maazel will lead the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Super Concert in Seoul on Feb. 6-7 at the Seoul Arts Center, replacing the orchestra’s chief conductor, Riccardo Muti. Muti on Friday announced that he will drop out of the orchestra’s Asia tour this year due to a medical condition. He is reportedly suffering from a severe flu. “I feel very sad, frustrated and upset to leave my wonderful musicians and audiences in Chicago and on this very importa

Jan. 20, 2013

Artday holds charity auction featuring kite paintings

Artday, a sister company of The Korea Herald, holds a charity auction with Lotte Department Store Yeongdeungpo this week. The event presents a collection of hand-painted kites made by 41 famous Korean artists. The paintings are drawn on different-shaped traditional Korean kites ― the square “bangpae kites” and the triangular “ray kites.”Kite flying is a traditional Korean winter pastime that people enjoyed during New Year’s Day.  The event invited a number of famous Korean artists representing d

Jan. 20, 2013

The Making of ‘Rebecca’

Losing weight and getting facials were what it took the three men to play the leading role of “Rebecca,” one of the most anticipated musicals in the first half of the year.“This is a role that requires wearing suits all the time,” said actor Yoo Jun-sang, who is sharing the role of an English aristocratic widower with actors Oh Man-seok and Ryu Jung-han. “And you have to look good in them. So I can’t eat too much. Otherwise I wouldn’t look so good.”It’s been more than a week since the opening of

Jan. 20, 2013

Calendar

Exhibitions“Maden Pictures 13”: Arario Gallery Cheongdam presents a photography and video exhibition as its first show of the year. Titled “Maden Pictures 13,” the exhibition shows the artwork of five young artists who use photography as a medium to convey their social and personal voices and make the viewers think about their intentions beyond the constructed images. The scenes in the photographs exhibit their own fascinating story. The exhibition runs from Jan. 15―March 3 at Arario Gallery Che

Jan. 18, 2013

Eyelike

CNBLUE comes back revamped with ‘Re:Blue’CNBLUE“Re:BLUE”(CJ E&M)With their large fan base, Korean rock stars CNBLUE can surely no longer refer to themselves as an indie band. The young musicians of CNBLUE show off a little something new with their latest album release “Re:Blue.”The album’s title track “I’m Sorry” is upbeat, snappy and a good listen overall. With the elements of mild metal rock mixed in with modern rock, the boys start off the album snatching the listener’s attention.On the other

Jan. 18, 2013

Twitter feud between Krugman, Ilves to be turned into opera

TALLINN (AFP) ― A Twitter feud in June between the Estonian president and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman who questioned the impact of Estonia’s austerity measures, is being turned into an opera, U.S. composer Eugene Birman told AFP on Wednesday.“Our short opera will be first performed by Iris Oja and the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra conducted by Risto Joost during Tallinn Music Week on April 7,” Birman, who moved from Riga to the U.S. at age of six, told AFP.The piece, in two movements, uses

Jan. 17, 2013