Korean contemporary artists present innovative forms of art at Kassel DocumentaThree Korean artists are showcasing their works at one of the world’s largest and most prestigious contemporary art fairs held in Germany. It is the second time Korean artists have been invited to the Kassel Documenta since 1992 ― the festival has been taking place every five years since 1955.The three 40-something-year-old artists Moon Kyung-won, Jeon Joon-ho and Yang Haegue present innovative art forms that focus on

Chinese, Korean and U.S. researchers have created an extensive online database for Korean classics in Chinese, Korean and Romanized Korean as part of their East Asian studies project, City University of Hong Kong (CityU) said Sunday. The database created by researchers from CityU and partner institutions in Korea and the U.S. is a collection of 3,000 volumes of old Korean literature written in classical Chinese. “The collection is now easy to browse through, thanks to this cross-regional and cro

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK ― The Grand Canyon’s beauty beckons like gravity, pulling even the timid to the chasm’s edge.But for those committing to the challenge of a cross-canyon hike, there awaits below the rim a reward beyond the spectacular scenery: time travel.Those horizontal stripes on the postcard panoramas trace a billion years of geological history. They are the sediment and fossils of ancient oceans. According to author Scott Thybony, who literally wrote the books on canyon trails, to

LONDON ― As a Californian, I had forgotten that you don’t cancel your life just because it rains. If you did, you’d never see anything in London, at least not recently. And there is much to see.Too much, in fact. It’s a travel buffet, and it’s hard not to load your plate with a plethora of monuments, historic buildings and churches.It’s important to see that London, but it’s imperative to see the lesser-known London, if only to escape the hordes who are coming here for the Queen’s Diamond Jubile

Nutrient-rich food helps restore appetite and energySummer keeps heating up and as the weather starts to get warmer than usual, many people might already feel exhausted from the heat.Still a long way to go till the end of the season, staying healthy during the summer requires some nutrient-rich food to keep you revved up. According to Jeong Ian, an Oriental medicine doctor, summer is the time when you easily lose your appetite and energy, a result of exhaustion you feel amid the heat and perspir

The world’s largest tourism organization will hold its world congress in Korea for the first time, its organizing committee said on Tuesday. The gathering of tourism professionals is scheduled to be held Oct.2-7 in Seoul and Incheon this year. “The event will be a great opportunity for Korea to promote itself as a major tourist destination to tourism experts. It means more as this year marks the last year of the travel campaign ‘Visit Korea 2010-2012,’ which expects to reach the goal of attracti

Viewers become part of exhibits, study their body and balanceAn innovative exhibition is creating a rare scene in the Korean art world by combining art and dance. At the exhibition titled “The Move: Art and Dance since the 1960s” at the National Museum of Contemporary Art of Korea, the artwork is not in a completed state until viewers engage with it physically. For two months, the NMOCA will feature a dynamic exhibition featuring installations and sculptures complemented with live dance performa

The K-pop girl group KARA has been chosen to receive an award as one of the key contributors to Korean tourism, the Korea Tourism Organization said Tuesday.The state run organization said KARA would receive the award given to people, companies and popular tourist destinations for promoting Korea’s image overseas and attracting foreign tourists. The five-member female group has been active both in Japan and Korea, and has led the K-pop boom in Japan. The group was selected as the most popular Kor

Top K-pop groups to dominate summer soundtracksWonder Girls and Big Bang dominated the music charts after the release of their new albums on Sunday, proving their firm hold on the K-pop music scene. Wonder Girls returned with “Wonder Party,” filled with playful and cheerful songs including “Like This” and five other new songs. Big Bang unveiled a special edition album with five new songs, including powerful title track “Monster” and four other songs released previously and made into different ve

As Korea and New Zealand celebrate a year of friendship this year, cultural events celebrating the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties will be held in New Zealand next week. Three separate events will take place in Auckland on Sunday, Christchurch on Tuesday and Wellington on Friday featuring Korean music performances combined with New Zealand traditional performances, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Friday. “I hope the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between

While many Koreans believe the birthplace of Buddha to be in India, Nepal’s state tourism agency aims to correct the misconception and promote their country as the actual birthplace of Buddha. As the year marks Visit Lumbini Year, Nepal Tourism Board also aims to draw more Korean tourists to the major Buddhist pilgrimage site and establish the place as a symbol of peace. “Lumbini is the birthplace of Lord Buddha born more than 2,500 years ago. As the year marks the Visit Lumbini Year, we plan to

CHELAN, Washington ― Just say the words “summer at the lake” in certain company, and you’ll get a wistful smile, possibly followed by stories about fishing contests, belly-flops, mosquito bites, campfire songs, sexual awakening, lingering regret, family feuds, winterizing expenses and the prospect that the mortgage interest tax deductions for second homes might someday be disallowed.Now, say “summer at the lake” to a room full of Seattleites, and talk will likely turn to Lake Chelan.Lake Chelan,

Akira Back talks about where Korean food should be headedKoreans who tasted a Korean-American chef’s Las Vegas cuisine in Seoul earlier this week might have found some common ground with him. Akira Back’s seven-course Las Vegas meal was a representation of his memories of Korea and life experiences. “When they eat it, they will go like ‘I ate this when I was little,’” Akira Back, the executive chef at the Yellowtail Japanese Restaurant & Lounge at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, told The Korea

Winners of Colombia’s first K-pop reality show take first step toward stardomThe winners of the first K-pop audition show overseas had their wishes come true when they performed in the homeland of Korean pop music on Wednesday.Since April, Arirang TV, Korea’s English-language broadcaster, and Caracol TV, a Colombian broadcaster, have jointly produced “K-pop Reality,” a K-pop audition show in Colombia.It was the first such show created jointly by a Korean and foreign broadcaster in a foreign coun

Following is the fourth in a series of articles in which leading architects discuss their representative work. ― Ed.For many people, architectural space holds numerous meanings and responses. A space born out of a certain form creates countless stories for pedestrians who walk past the buildings or who look at them from afar; the stories can be different for the builders, the owners and the users. An architect is a person who gathers and predicts such stories and translates them into a form. Thu

For those who reminisce on the good old ’70s and ’80s, a festival sure to conjure up old memories and exhibit the culture of the time is to be held next month. The music festival “Arirang Fest,” themed around the music of the ’70s and ’80s and makgeolli, one of Korea’s favorite alcoholic beverages, will be held for the first time from June 8-10 at Kintex in Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province.  Well-known singers and bands from the era, including rock singer Kim Jong-seo, band Love and Peace and six other

Kukje Gallery exhibition features early iconic works shown for the first time in Korea An exhibition of works by the late French-American artist Louise Bourgeois opened last week, featuring some of her early iconic pieces that are being shown for the first time in Korea. Titled “Personages,” the exhibition showcases 14 pieces created between the 1940s and the early 1950s that established Bourgeois as one of the most prominent sculptors after World War II.Known in Korea for the gigantic spider sc

Exhibition, symposium and performances to commemorate the artist’s life and worksAs this year marks the late pioneering video artist Paik Nam June’s 80th birthday, a series of events are planned to shed new light on the artist’s life and work.Starting on his birthday, July 20, the Nam June Paik Art Center in Gyeonggi Province plans to hold a special exhibition featuring a rare collection of his major works, followed by a symposium and musical performances attended by his wife Shigeko Kubota, his

ULAANBAATAR ― The travels that the Korean workers undertake to study hazards in Mongolian mines are full of risks and challenges. Researchers of MIRECO, the Korean mine hazards prevention organization, visited more than 200 mines last year, traveling more than 600 kilometers each time. “We covered the western part of Mongolia and it was 18,000 kilometers away from Ulaanbaatar. The asphalt roads only cover 400 kilometers from the capital and the rest of the roads are just unpaved. We travel on th

 ULAANBAATAR ― The chief of Korea’s state aid agency in Ulaanbaatar said aid programs should lay the groundwork for a mutually beneficial economic cooperation in the future combining Mongolia’s vast land and resources and Korea’s technology and development know-how.“Korea and Mongolia are very close countries geographically and culturally. There are projects the two countries can work together on to achieve economic prosperity in the Northeast Asian region,” said Lee Dong-ku, resident representa