Looking back on the past five decades, painter Kim Byung-jong said he was “raised by nature” when he was a child, which has shaped his artistic inspiration until the present day. The energy, colors – particularly the theme of life – seen in his works come from nature. Born in Namwon, a small city located just outside South Korea’s largest set of mountains, Jirisan National Park, Kim recalled the sound of the leaves of bamboo trees behind his house brushing against e

Arts & Design Oct. 15, 2024

As this year marks the first anniversary of the death of Korean dansaekhwa master Park Seo-bo, galleries in Korea and abroad are commemorating his legacy by unveiling his last body of paintings and works that capture the artist created by Korean sculptor Gwon Osang. White Cube in New York will show Park’s “Newspaper Ecriture” for the first time, the final body of work created by the artist before his passing in 2023. The exhibition offers an opportunity to learn how the artist

Arts & Design Oct. 14, 2024

The Herald Design Forum 2024 took place Tuesday at Sebitseom in southern Seoul, in the floating cultural complex in Han river with the theme of “Inspiration, Limitless?” inviting architects, designers, visual content creators and top experts in cutting-edge technology who push their boundary in the fields. “For the past 13 years, the Herald Design Forum has brought together more than 100 design experts to discuss how design has evolved and changed our society, joined by more th

Arts & Design Oct. 9, 2024

Humanity lies in the architecture touched by Pritzker Prize-winning architects Anne Lacaton and Jean Philippe Vassal. They pay tribute to what is already existing, whether it is nature, humans or other buildings. “It is about transformation from the existing, and with the existing,” Vassal said at the Herald Design Forum 2024 held on Tuesday in Seoul with the theme of “Inspiration, Limitless?” The duo's renovation of a 16-story, 96-unit social housing tower block, &l

Arts & Design Oct. 9, 2024

Korean art will be at the center of attention in the UK this fall, with a variety of exhibitions featuring established Korean artists and projects set to coincide with Frieze London, which runs Wednesday to Sunday. The Korean Cultural Center UK will host events on Thursday and Friday, bringing together artists and art enthusiasts alike for networking and a viewing of the ongoing exhibition “Digital Heritage, Now! AI With You.” The exhibition showcases the beauty and significance of K

Arts & Design Oct. 7, 2024

Changwon, a South Korean city known as a manufacturing hub and the capital of South Gyeongsang Province, is hosting the seventh edition of the Changwon Sculpture Biennale, exploring the relationship between urban development and sculpture. As the nation’s sole sculpture biennale, the event kicked off on Sept. 27, spanning unique venues that encapsulate the city’s modern history -- Seongsan Shell Mound, Changwon Cultural Complex Center Dongnam Ground, Seongsan Art Hall and Changwon Ci

Arts & Design Oct. 6, 2024

The second edition of Define Seoul, a design and art fair launched by Art Busan, will expand its scale with special exhibitions and more participating galleries in October in the hip Seoul neighborhood of Seongsu-dong. The design art fair was inaugurated last year as an art fair for collectors that integrates fine art and design. The second edition under the theme of “The Meaning of Simplicity: Attitude Towards life in a Rational Era" is curated by designer Yang Teo, who also curated

Arts & Design Oct. 2, 2024

Known as a Buddhist spiritual leader, Ven. Seongpa has combined Buddhist practice with artistic creation, with his art as both the process and the result. Seongpa has unveiled some 120 works created over the past decades at the exhibition entitled “Seongpa Seonye – COSMOS,” which opened at the Seoul Arts Center last week. While his art encompasses a wide range range of genres, from calligraphy and ceramics to painting and sculpture, the exhibition focuses on lacquer works. Lacq

Arts & Design Sept. 30, 2024

One may raise their eyebrows hearing the philosophy of the French architects Anne Lacaton and Jean Philippe Vassal whose practices are opposed to demolishing buildings to build new ones. The Pritzker-winning architects’ approach is particularly unusual in Korean society where the wholesale reconstruction of apartment complexes to be taller, newer and more luxurious is a common and positively regarded way to raise home and property values. “We do not think it is necessary to demolish

Arts & Design Sept. 30, 2024

Take a stroll in downtown Seoul to check out some art amid the autumn breeze, works by emerging artists at Peres Projects near Songhyeon Yeollin Park, Korean pioneering abstract artist at PKM Gallery in Samcheong-dong and Swiss-born, US-based artist Urs Fischer at Jason Haam in Seongbuk-gu. Emerging artists at Peres Projects Peres Projects in Seoul is currently presenting exhibitions of British artist Rebecca Ackroyd and Danish artist Anton Munar. Ackroyd's “The Party Is A Woman&rdquo

Arts & Design Sept. 28, 2024

Listening Room by Ode at The Hyundai Seoul Visitors can easily spend hours exploring major international brands and local shops at The Hyundai Seoul, Seoul's largest department store and pop-up store mecca. Among all the shops, entertainment facilities and restaurants vying for attention, be sure not to miss Listening Room by Ode when visiting the mall. Located on the second basement floor near the main escalator, the shop welcomes music lovers with colorful LPs and record players. Visitors

Culture Sept. 27, 2024

A 22-meter high wall with 20,000 colorful blocks of Korean letters, or Hangeul, was unveiled Wednesday at the newly opened Korean Cultural Center New York, on E. 32nd Street in Manhattan. The monumental work was created by New York-based artist Kang Ik-joong, known for his iconic works of Hangeul blocks. Kang’s installation “Hangeul Wall: Things I Love to Talk About” was created in collaboration with participants from more than 50 countries around the world. Some 7,000 submissi

Arts & Design Sept. 26, 2024

GWANGJU -- A soundscape combining rainfall with a Qatari children's folk song fills the corridor where a reflection of Qatari traditional architecture patterns surround visitors. On the wall are Qatari idioms. One reads: “Whatever comes from the sky, the earth accepts.” The National Museum of Qatar presents its national pavilion exhibition at the Gwangju Biennale, Asia’s leading art biennale, which kicked off Sept. 7 across the city of Gwangju. The title of the exhibition

Arts & Design Sept. 22, 2024

The National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea has unveiled a virtual reality exhibition tour for “Performative Home: Architecture for Alternative Living," which is currently physically on view at the museum’s Gwacheon venue. For the VR tour, the actual exhibition space was captured in 360 degrees, and architectural materials such as 3D models and sketches were used. The 360-degree VR exhibition tour, provided in English and available on the MMCA’s YouTube channel, is the

Arts & Design Sept. 13, 2024

GWANGJU -- The 15th edition of the Gwangju Bienanle, which kicked off on Saturday in Gwangju, in Korea's southwest, presents “Pansori, a soundscape of the 21st century" as its theme, featuring 72 artists. Behind this theme of reinterpreting pansori -- a traditional Korean form of musical storytelling accompanied by a drummer -- is French curator Nicolas Bourriaud. Asia’s prestigious biennale has maintained its foundation in the "Gwangju Spirit," also known as the

Arts & Design Sept. 10, 2024