Exhibition about Hangeul held in Paris

An exhibition about the Korean alphabet titled “Hangeul: The Korean Alphabet Meets Design” is being held at the Korean Cultural Center in Paris. The exhibition, organized jointly by the National Hangeul Museum and the Korean Cultural Center in Paris, will go on until Nov. 12. The museum explained that the exhibition is held as part of its Hangeul experience project, which aims to promote the Korean language globally. Also, the exhibition is held to reflect the recent Korean lang

Oct. 5, 2021

[Herald Design Forum 2021] Hermes art director Sang Jeon builds bridges with customers during pandemic

Closing the distance between French luxury brand Hermes and its customers while the pandemic has kept them physically apart has been the goal of Sang Jeon, Hermes’ art director for digital platforms. “I provide some whimsical and humorous contents on social media to people who cannot visit the store during the pandemic and keep them familiar with the brand, narrowing the physical distance between the two, which grew due to the pandemic,” Jeon said in a recent email interview

Oct. 5, 2021

[Herald Design Forum 2021] Jeffrey Ludlow takes on sustainability of signage 　

Jeffrey Ludlow -- a creative director at the Point of Reference studio in Madrid -- has been pondering issues related to sustainability, which are easily overlooked in the design industry. He came to think critically about signage as a major contributor to environmental issues. “Signage is everywhere and it comprises a large component of our urban life. It speaks to us about brands and it gives us directions and labels our world,” Ludlow said in an email interview with The Korea

Oct. 2, 2021

MMCA saves session for elderly for Lee Kun-hee collection exhibition

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea’s exhibition of 54 modern art masterpieces bequeathed by the Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee has become the most popular exhibition in the museum’s history, with reservations filling fast as soon as time slots open each day. In efforts to consider older visitors, the museum reserves the 10 a.m. slot on Tuesdays for the over-65s. The museum provides a total of eight sessions each day, each allowing 20 visitors for an hour

Oct. 1, 2021

Arko Art Center brings together artists who envision future world

The Arko Art Center, a museum in central Seoul, kicked off “Nothing Makes Itself” to explore interaction and interconnection with nonhuman entities and pose the question of how humans can mingle with technology and nature. The installation work “Impulse” hangs from the ceiling as if it were a chandelier. It ceaselessly transmits clear liquid and bubbles into the transparent cylinders to its 27 branches. Some may see it as an upside down tree whose pure sap flows to its

Sept. 30, 2021

[Herald Design Forum 2021] Mitch Paone expands design realm driven by love for music

DIA Studio, a creative agency based in New York and Geneva, has evolved over the past decade as a company that helps create brand identities, cooperating with globally influential entities such as Squarespace, Spotify, Adidas, Facebook, Nike, Balenciaga and more. “Our studio created the term ‘kinetic identity’ around 2016. We made a major discovery when creating works for A-Trak and Nike that completely shifted our entire creative process which were inspired by a lot of my in

Sept. 30, 2021

2021 Korea Art Week to open Oct. 7

Korea Art Week 2021, organized by the Culture Ministry’s Korea Arts Management Service, will take place Oct. 7-17 and feature local art exhibitions and events. A total of 17 art tours prepared by different institutions will be available this year, allowing groups of up to 10 people to enjoy guided tours of art galleries as well as public and private art museums with curators. Some 21 art institutions selected through an open competition will present “Beyond Exhibition,” a

Sept. 29, 2021

[Herald Design Forum 2021] Ray Winkler takes on challenges of pandemic, inspires as entertainment architect

When the COVID-19 pandemic swept the globe last year, the entertainment industry was hit badly with performances and concert tours canceled or postponed one after another. Ray Winkler, CEO and design director of STUFISH Entertainment Architects, took the crisis as an opportunity to rethink where his team and company stood and how they could overcome the challenge. “Change is constant. If you can’t adapt to the change, you are done. Stufish is still here because we have been able

Sept. 28, 2021

Leeum Museum of Art starts afresh

The Leeum Museum of Art is set to reopen on Oct. 8 after undergoing an “exceptionally large-scale” renewal, according to the Samsung Foundation of Culture on Monday. The museum will reopen with “Human, 7 Questions” as its first thematic exhibition since Hong Ra-hee, wife of the late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee, stepped down as director in March 2017 after 13 years. Her resignation came as her only son, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, was embroiled in

Sept. 27, 2021

Symposium talks about museums’ expanding role in post-pandemic world

A real-time discussion, “What Do Museums Connect?: Museums in a Post-Pandemic World,” between art experts across the globe and the general public, will be livestreamed on Thursday by the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea. The discussion is part of an MMCA symposium that started earlier this month to explore the changing environment for museums and their expanding role in post-pandemic times. The symposium offers 10 talks by art experts consisting of two section

Sept. 26, 2021

[Herald Design Forum 2021] British architect Amanda Levete fills need for public spaces

British architect Amanda Levete, who founded the architecture studio AL_A in London, has emphasized community values as an architect, bringing public spaces into buildings and architectural spaces. In the pandemic times, she believes, such public spaces have become crucial. “Public spaces are more important now than ever before. We need to make opportunities to connect people because when you do, relationships are formed and ideas exchanged -- and that creates progress,” Levete tol

Sept. 25, 2021

Culture Minister hints at expansion of Korean gallery at the Met

The Korean government will push for the expansion of the exhibition hall for Korean art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Culture Minister Hwang Hee on Thursday said the government will look into expanding the Arts of Korea Gallery at the renowned museum at a press event held with New York correspondents. “The director and CEO of the Metropolitan Museum of Art suggested moving the Arts of Korea Gallery,” Hwang said at the meeting, following the visit to the museum wit

Sept. 23, 2021

Seoul Fashion Week to be staged virtually, again

The 2022 spring-summer Seoul Fashion Week will take place virtually starting Oct. 7, with top Korean designers presenting their collections at historic landmarks across Seoul. A total of 37 fashion brands -- 26 established designer brands for the Seoul Collection shows and 11 rookie designer brands for the Generation Next shows -- will be showcasing their new lineup in the upcoming fashion week. Participating brands include LIE and BMUET(TE) whose collections were showcased during the recent

Sept. 22, 2021

Avant-garde artist Kim Ku-lim shows Yin and Yang series at Gana Art Center

Kim Ku-lim, Korea’s first generation avant-garde artist, has been expanding the boundaries of Korean experimental art since the 1960s. His Yin and Yang series that includes 20 of his new works are being shown at the Gana Art Center in Jongno-gu, central Seoul. Kim’s solo exhibition “Yin and Yang” shows a series of artworks that he has worked on since the late 1980s with the theme of “opposition and unison of things.” After realizing that the harmony of di

Sept. 21, 2021

Houses recreated as installations pose questions about happiness

When installation artist Chen Dai-goang traveled to various Asian countries, the buildings there seemed to show how politics, economics and culture of the industrial era had been imprinted on them. Chen collected and took photographs of the architecture and reproduced them as installation works which are on display at the outdoor space at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea in Cheongju in North Chungcheong Province, the museum’s fourth venue in the country. The i

Sept. 21, 2021

Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism kicks off across Seoul

The Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism began Thursday under the theme of “Crossroads, Building the Resilient City,” exploring how the pandemic has transformed and impacted living spaces. 　The third edition of the biennale encompasses five conflicting themes -- “Above/Below,” “Heritage/Modern,” “Craft/Digital,” “Natural/Artificial” and “Safe/Risk” -- focusing on how cities can become more resilient. The 2021 event

Sept. 17, 2021

Park Seo-bo holds second solo exhibition at Kukje Gallery

Korea’s contemporary art master Park Seo-bo is showcasing 16 paintings of his recent Ecriture series inspired by nature at his solo exhibition at Kukje Gallery. Titled “PARK SEO-BO,“ the exhibition which runs through Oct. 31, shows how nature has become the artist’s core value and his belief that art should serve to heal people. The 91-year-old artist is a pioneer of Korea’s contemporary art, leading the dansaekhwa movement since the late 1960s. Translated as &ld

Sept. 15, 2021

Hair designer Cha Hong looks back on 10-year career

Different hairstyles give different impressions. Some people express their moods through hairstyles and refresh their mind with a bold chop or perm. While fashion is easily thought of as a way to express one’s persona, so do hairstyles as it represents one’s identity, mood, tastes. Korea’s leading hair designer Cha Hong showcased 80 hairstyles she has presented over the past decade at the exhibition “Narratives in Style” at Beacon Studio in Seongsu-dong, Seoul.

Sept. 13, 2021

Garden at Deoksugung vitalized with contemporary art

Gardens were a source of inspiration to the literati in the late Joseon dynasty, where a culture of paintings and writings on “uiwon” flourished. Uiwon is defined as the garden of one’s mind. Inspired by the culture of uiwon, the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, and the Cultural Heritage Administration are showcasing “Deoksugung Project 2021: Garden of Imagination” at Deoksugung, one of five royal palaces in central Seoul. The project is

Sept. 13, 2021

Concept Korea to roll out fashion film during New York Fashion Week

Concept Korea NYFW S/S 2022 will be held online as part of programs scheduled for New York Fashion Week, introducing three Korean fashion brands to help promote their brand names. The three fashion brands -- EENK, Ul:kin and NOHANT -- will showcase their 2022 spring/summer collection through a digital fashion film which will be unveiled on the New York Fashion Week’s official website at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Thursday, according to the Korea Creative Content Agency. The content

Sept. 11, 2021