Nam June Paik, a pioneer of video art, is both famous and unknown to many in Korea. A query on the name “Nam June Paik” on Korean web portal Naver brings up several questions posted by young students asking who the artist is for their schoolwork. “My son, who is a first-year middle school student, doesn’t really know much about him either,” said Kim Bang-eun, president of Gallery Yeh, currently hosting the Nam June Paik exhibition at Seoul’s landmark Dongdaemun Design Plaza. “I think it’s becaus

In August 1975, a fisherman landed an unusual catch off the west coast of Korea. In his fishing net were six ceramic vessels including celadons -- or pottery made with celadon glaze -- that date back to the 14th century Yuan Dynasty China. This prompted people to say that there must be a shipwreck with more prized relics buried deep in the muddy seabed off the island of Jeungdo, Sinan in South Jeolla Province. A year later, archaeologists launched an underwater salvage operation which continued

Herald Corp. will hold a design festival introducing innovative products by leading designers in Korea from July 29-31 at the HiBrand shopping mall in Seoul. The three-day sale of design products, organized in cooperation with HiBrand, will present a variety of design products ranging from stationery and interior decor items to clothing and accessories. The market is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.The festival also offers classes where visitors can participate in making simple cards, gift boxes and

Short-lived art festivals and biennales abound in Korean cities, but the city of Anyang located 20 kilometers from the capital city of Seoul seeks to create art that can have a long-lasting impact on residents’ lives. “We are interested in interacting with Anyang and the public. We have worked together with artists to find out what the parameter of the public space is, what can define public art and how we can meet the public through artworks and production,” said Joo Eun-gie, the art director o

The kings of the Joseon era (1392-1910) tucked into a total of seven meals daily and each one involved meticulous planning. The day would begin with a medicinal herbal soup early in the morning, followed by breakfast, lunch and dinner with light meals and snacks between the three meals. All the meals were carefully planned and prepared by court doctors and kitchen staff, who regarded King’s food as an important part of national politics in the kingdom, which existed more than 500 years before Ko

The Plastic Art Seoul 2016, Korea‘s first art fair devoted to sculptures and installations, will open next week in Seoul.The art fair will bring together more than 4,000 pieces of plastic art by some 150 artists represented by major galleries in Korea. Plastic art refers to 3-D visual artworks using materials, stones, wood, metals and mixed media. “The fair offers a chance for visitors to view a variety of sculptures and installations in one spot,” said Shin Jun-won, head of the Plastic Art Seou

Two exhibitions in Seoul are offering a rare glimpse into the lives of different social classes in the Joseon era.Seoul Arts Center’s Calligraphy Museum has brought together a rare collection of still life paintings from the Joseon era, depicting stacks of books with decorative luxury items, which were popular among royals and aristocrats. In contrast, the exhibition also features paintings of Chinese characters that wealthy commoners hung in their homes to emulate the upper class’ cultural tast

The new group exhibition of young artists at Kukje Gallery asks a question that the youth of today can easily relate to -- to what extent do we need to try to be successful and famous? “There is desperation in today’s young generation to be successful and well-known. But, at the same time, they often see and fear that some fast-earned fame may be ephemeral,” said Kim Sung-won, an art professor and critic who curated the exhibition, at the press preview of the exhibition last week. “This exhibiti

The Culture Ministry revealed “Creative Korea” as a new slogan for branding the nation on Monday. “The new brand slogan promotes the value that the Republic of Korea upholds and an image that the country wants to promote abroad,” said Kim Jong-deok, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, at a news conference announcing the brand slogan and logo design on Monday.  The new slogan and logo were created following nationwide polls the government conducted among citizens who were asked about keyword

Artist Lee U-fan reiterated Thursday that all 13 paintings that the National Forensic Service identified as counterfeits were authentic and revealed that a police officer tried to get him to say that some of the paintings were fakes.“All 13 paintings are undoubtedly mine,” said Lee at the press conference Thursday in Seoul. “They are created with my own flow, rhythm and colors,” he added.  Much to the surprise of many, he claimed that one of the police officers present with him during the examin

Seoul Auction has withdrawn a book of sketches by Korean artist Chun Kyung-ja that was due to be auctioned Wednesday. The book of 16 drawings by Chun, bidding for which was set to start at 400 million won ($343,000), was removed from the list of artworks Tuesday, just one day before the auction, amid suspicion the sketches may be counterfeit. “An art expert raised suspicion that the sketches might have been forged at a private gathering and it has been spread in the Korean art world. We already

 GWANGJU -- The name of the Seoul-based artist duo Kimchi and Chips pretty much tells where the artists are from.  Korean-British artist duo Mimi Son and Elliot Woods formed an art studio in 2009, adopting the quirky name. Since then, the two have been creating installations that challenge people’s perception of light and space and presenting them at museums and galleries throughout the world. One of the most well-known works is the first edition of the “Light Barrier” series in which the artist

Artist Lee U-fan, whose abstract paintings have become the subjects of art forgeries, took a look at the paintings the National Forensic Service identified as counterfeits for the first time Monday, but said he has yet to conclude if they are fakes. 　“I will come back (to the police) the day after tomorrow. There are things I have to check again,” said Lee as he left the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency after having examined the paintings. 　Lee’s attorney Choi Soon-yong explained that Lee would

Preparing a funeral for a Joseon king required many steps. 　It took five to seven months to prepare the body for the funeral. It required that the country’s top pungsu -- or Korean geomancy -- experts choose an ideal burial site. And thousands of workers were recruited to construct the tomb and carry the body to the burial site.　Such lesser-known facts about kings’ deaths and the complex funeral procedures of the Joseon era (1392-1910) are revealed at the new exhibition “Royal Tombs of the Joseo

The Culture Ministry announced five winners of the 2016 Korean Young Architects Award on Wednesday. 　The winners were Kim Hyun-seok of June Architects and architect duos Shin Min-jae and Ahn Kee-hyun of AnLstudio as well as Lee Seung-taek and Lim Mi-jeong of STPMJ Architecture.  Lim Mi-jeong (left) and Lee Seung-taek of STPMJ Architecture (Korea Architects Institute) Shin Min-jae (left) and Ahn Kee-hyun of AnLstudio (Korea Architects Institute)　The prestigious architect award established in 2008

Herald Artday, a subsidiary of Herald Corp., is holding an online auction from June 24-28, presenting major artworks of modern and contemporary Korean artists. The art auction features some 190 artworks of renowned Korean artists, including Young-woo, Kim Jong-hak, Ha Dong-cheol, Oh Chi-gyun, Ahn Chang-hong and Moon Hyeong-tae. Highlights of the auction include an abstract painting made in the early 1970s by the late Kwon Young-woo, who recently emerged as a Dansaekhwa artist, and the snow lands

Artist Lee U-fan will finally have a look at the paintings that the National Forensic Service confirmed as counterfeits of his works next Monday. 　“We can’t conclude whether the paintings are forged or not since we haven’t seen them,” said Lee’s attorney Choi Soon-yong in a phone call with The Korea Herald.　Choi said Lee will then decide on when and how he will press charges against the art forgers -- there are suspected to be several art forgers -- and gallerists, who are accused of distributin

Artworks are usually purchased primarily for aesthetic reasons and are mostly privately owned, but a relatively new Chinese model of art investment allows multiple buyers to share an artwork. 　The Chinese model of artwork stock exchange, which invites investors to buy and sell shares of artworks, has landed in Korea, with the China National Culture and Art Co., LTD, a holding company under the China’s Culture Ministry, opening the Korea Culture and Artworks Exchange on Wednesday. This marks the

Singer-artist Cho Young-nam, who has been in hot water since May over allegations he hired a ghost painter for several years to create his paintings, was indicted without detention on fraud charges Tuesday, according to the Chuncheon Supreme Prosecutors’ Office. 　Cho is accused of allegedly having two ghost painters create his paintings, well known for motifs of Korean folk card game Go-Stop, from about five years ago and selling them without informing his buyers of the fact. His manager was als

A colossal 19th-century map of the Korean Peninsula will go on the block at an art auction in Seoul on June 28.　The map of the Korean Peninsula “Daedongyeojido,” which measures 3.8 meters by 6.7 meters in total, was made by geographer Kim Jeong-ho in 1861.　The map is one of some 20 remaining Daedongyeojido maps and one of the three known colored versions to date. Maps of Daedongyeojido, translated as the great map of the East, are housed at museums and public institutions in Korea, including Kyu