Artist Kim Sung-ho uses books as the main objects for his art, believing that they have helped build up his own world. The 40-year-old painter came up with the concept of a stack of books called “volume tower” that he pursues using hyperrealism. The artist is presenting a new volume tower series inspired by “chaekgeori” - Korea’s traditional paintings that depict books, a variety of scholars’ ornaments and fruits displayed on bookshelves -- at Park Ryu Sook

Arts & Design March 8, 2021

Lee Bul is one of the most influential contemporary artists both at home and abroad, known for challenging the conventional and pushing the boundaries of art. “Lee Bul – Beginning” at Seoul Museum of Art focuses on Lee’s early works from the late 1980s and 1990s that reflect the artist’s conscious rejection of conventional art when she was only in her 20s and early 30s. Born in 1964, she lived in an era of oppressive dictatorial regime in South Korea, observing p

Arts & Design March 6, 2021

Gana Foundation for Arts and Culture opened an exhibition Friday to introduce the artists of Jamunbak. Jamunbak refers to a region outside the Jahamun Gate – one of eight gates of the Seoul Fortress Wall in Pyeongchang-dong Jongno-gu – where many artists, including painters, sculptors, novelists and musicians, live or work in their studios. Nearly 200 artists reside in the region, as well as 100 art institutes, according to Gana Art Center. The exhibition is part of the Jamunba

Arts & Design March 5, 2021

Artist Ryu Sung-sil has been selected as the winner of the 19th Hermes Foundation Missulsang, the foundation announced Tuesday. The young artist has explored a variety of art medium that reflect her critique of social issues in Korea as an artist. Once every two years, the foundation selects a talented new Korean artist to promote in Korea and abroad. The awardee is given 20 million won ($17,800) in prize money and is given financial support to create new works for a solo exhibition at the

Arts & Design March 3, 2021

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea will host an online academic seminar to explore the work of avant-garde artist Lee Seung-taek, as part of a special session associated with the artist’s ongoing retrospective exhibition. The artist’s first retrospective at the national museum, which opened in November, encompasses the artist’s 60-year career through around 250 installations, sculptures and paintings. The exhibition runs through March 28. “The ac

Arts & Design March 2, 2021

American Photographer Robert Mapplethorpe was an icon of American society, challenging the world with his bold and proactive works that featured the bodies of women, Black men and the LGBT community in the 1970s and 1980s. The exhibition “Robert Mapplethorpe: More Life,” held at Kukje Gallery’s Seoul and Busan venues, is the first solo exhibition of the artist’s work in Korea. The show runs through March 28. Born in 1946, Mapplethorpe created print editions from ove

Arts & Design March 1, 2021

The Galleries Art Fair 2021 -- Korea’s first art fair of the year -- will kick off on Wednesday with a showcase of more than 3,000 artworks. The oldest art fair in Korea will be held for five days at Coex in southern Seoul under strict preventative measures, according to the Galleries of Association Korea. The VIP opening is scheduled for March 3 and the general opening will take place from March 4 to 7. Despite the pandemic situation, 500 artists from 107 galleries in Korea, which are

Arts & Design Feb. 28, 2021

The 13th Gwangju Biennale -- South Korea’s largest art biennale, which has become a major art event in Asia -- was previewed Wednesday at the Biennale Hall with the unveiling of a few of its commissioned works. Artistic directors Natasha Ginwala and Defne Ayas, based respectively in Sri Lanka and Germany, summarized the progress of the biennale ahead of its opening April 1. As suggested by the theme of the 13th edition of the biennale -- “Minds Rising, Spirits Tuning” -- the

Arts & Design Feb. 27, 2021

The Seoul Fashion Week is embarking on a digital fashion event for the 2021 fall-winter season with 45 fashion brands participating, after a similar online event for the spring-summer season in October. The 2021 fall-winter Seoul Fashion Week will run March 22-27 on the digital platform. A total of 45 fashion designers were selected to join the show -- 28 established designers for the Seoul Collection show and 17 rookie designers for Generation Next. While the number of rookie designers has

Arts & Design Feb. 22, 2021

Kang, a 65-year-old resident of Gyeonggi Province, had an eye lift surgery three years ago to restore her vision and to give herself a younger appearance before she got any older. “I am very satisfied with the surgery because it made me look younger and more lively. I strongly recommend that my friends get the operation if they want to,” Kang said. “I also have a friend who recently got a face lift surgery to look younger.” Kang and her friend are among the growing num

Culture Feb. 20, 2021

Painter Yun Suk-nam, who has dedicated her career to creating art advocating women’s rights, is showcasing new portraits of female independence activists during the Japanese colonial era who have long been neglected by historians because of their gender. The portraits of the female activists are on display at the exhibition titled “Women of Resistance, Becoming Historic -- Portraits of 14 Female Independence Activists Who Quaked History” at Hakgojae Gallery in Seoul.  Eac

Arts & Design Feb. 20, 2021

Chilean artist Cecilia Vicuna based in New York is showcasing her first solo exhibition in Asia at Lehman Maupin in Seoul. The 73-year-old artist is also an activist who advocates human rights issues and stands against the cultural homogenization phenomenon associated with globalization reflect this through her artwork. The exhibition title “Quipu Girok” is a combination of the ancient Andean word quipu, which means a knot, and the Korean word girok, which means record. 

Arts & Design Feb. 19, 2021

The 1930s and the 1940s were the golden age of Korean literature and art. The two genres flourished together, even as writers and artists faced the challenges of harsh Japanese colonial rule (1910-1945), which sought to suppress Korean culture. The bleak years saw lively interaction among painters, novelists and poets who inspired each other. Some would gather at Jebi, a coffee shop in what was then Gyeongseong, now called Seoul, run by Yi Sang, the country’s representative modern writer

Arts & Design Feb. 15, 2021

Korea’s National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art is embarking on an experimental journey with a new project to show how two seemingly different fields can collaborate by intertwining contemporary art with cutting-edge technology. Taking the theme of “Multiverse,” the national museum’s new project will introduce six rising and established artists and their artworks that adopt various technologies including immersive technology, robots that substitute the kinetic cap

Arts & Design Feb. 14, 2021

Hangwa, or traditional Korean confections, and rice cakes are essential snacks during the Korean lunar new year holiday. After a memorial service for ancestors and sharing meals with the family, traditional desserts are enjoyed with tea. While Korean desserts have been mainly relished during the traditional holidays, they are becoming more diverse and enjoying popularity among younger generation with creative visuals. “Korean desserts come in a wide variety as customers expect visual

Culture Feb. 13, 2021