A joint exhibition of 675 contemporary jewelry pieces, also known as art jewelry, by Korean and Austrian artists will run from Tuesday to July 28 at the Seoul Museum of Craft Art. “Beyond Adornment,” the first contemporary jewelry exhibition the two countries have held together from planning to hosting since 1892 when diplomatic ties were established, explores works of adornment by 54 Korean artists and 57 Austrian artists. Art jewelry gained recognition in the mid-20th century as an

Arts & Design May 27, 2024

Traditional Korean and African dances by both the Little Angels and TAGG marked the Africa Day 2024 Korea Business Forum on Thursday, with a side event introducing African food and craft. Twenty-three members of the Little Angles opened the celebrations with “buchaechum,” or fan dance, followed by the singing of “A Beautiful Country,” a Korean song, at the forum cohosted by Herald Media Group and the African Group of Ambassadors at the Swiss Grand Hotel Convention Center

Performance May 26, 2024

Explore Play Aquarium Bucheon Feast your eyes on colorful fish and remarkable marine life at Play Aquarium Bucheon in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province. Though Play Aquarium Bucheon is not as big as the country’s better-known aquariums -- Lotte Aquarium and Coex Aquarium -- it still has everything there is to satisfy young visitors by showing them exciting sea creatures up close. The aquarium greets its visitors with a wide range of fish tanks that house various fish species from around the world

Culture May 24, 2024

Jeju Folk Village A glimpse of what it was like living on Jeju Island in the 19th century is available at Jeju Folk Village. Visitors can check out an exhibition of “suseok,” or rocks of artistic value that are often collected, and spaces dedicated to wood and ceramic craftworks alongside paintings. Interactive experiences are available. Visitors can participate in activities like grinding grains with a millstone and play traditional games such as the board game “yutnori,&r

Travel May 24, 2024

A South Korean DJ-comedian in a Buddhist monk’s robe is riding growing popularity to step onto the global stage, but he is increasingly forced to deal with resurfacing complaints questioning his way of spreading the religion. Youn Sung-ho -- the comedian known as NewJeansNim, “snim” meaning monk in Korean -- stepped into the global spotlight in late April during his first overseas tour in Taiwan, where he delivered his electronic dance music performance of echoing Buddhist vers

Performance May 23, 2024

The CEO of a Korean luxury handcraft brand, Cheyul, believes that modernizing traditions while keeping the spirit behind them alive is key to delivering true “Korean luxury.” “We have shipped our armchair set adorned with mother-of-pearl as far away as Africa,” Lee told a gallery of foreign diplomatic missions during a tour of Cheyul’s flagship in Seoul’s Sinsa-dong on Tuesday. That armchair set is one example of how the company has put mother-of-pearl to mode

Arts & Design May 22, 2024

An exhibition shedding light on a culture of commitment to “exceptional craftsmanship” that powers Hermes is taking place in Seoul, as artisans demonstrate in person how the French luxury house has come to embody “know-how” and “creativity." At “Hermes in the Making,” 11 artisans -- all from France with one exception from Switzerland who works on watches -- offer a glimpse of their craft processes involving leather, silk, porcelain and gemstones, wi

Arts & Design May 20, 2024

The seventh annual Korea Craft Week kicked off Friday with four cities and counties hosting major events showcasing crafts and local craft traditions. Goseong County in Gangwon Province, Jinju in South Gyeongsang Province and North Jeolla Province’s Jeonju and Buan County will run programs to raise awareness of local crafts through May 26. In Goseong, visitors can take part in a challenge to craft something out of recycled litter retrieved from Song Ji-ho Beach and Ayajin Beach, and partic

Arts & Design May 17, 2024

The Korea Heritage Service officially marked its new start Friday with the agency managing national heritage reaffirming its commitment to be more “relatable.” Renaming the agency previously called the Cultural Heritage Administration, approved by the National Assembly last year, represents the largest overhaul in the agency’s history -- a change that warranted hosting an international meeting to mark the moment, according to KHS officials. “The meeting today is to announ

Culture May 17, 2024

Explore legendary Korean comics Visit the National Library of Korea this weekend to explore a special exhibition that delves into the history of Korean comics, or manhwa, by following the career of Lee Hyun-se -- the cartoonist behind one of Korea's most successful series ever published, "A Daunting Team." The exhibition, titled "The Road of Lee Hyun-se: Start of K-webtoon Legend," is free of charge and divided into three parts. The first part introduces various wor

Arts & Design May 17, 2024

Wonju Sogeumsan Grand Valley Prepare yourself before looking down. The Sogeumsan Suspension Bridge in Wonju, Gangwon Province is the longest pedestrian bridge in Korea, running 200 meters suspended across a canyon. The Night of Light Show will take place at Sogeumsan, with a fountain show and installations dotting the mountain with a kaleidoscope of colors. The show runs through Oct. 27 on Saturdays, Sundays and the Chuseok holiday. The Wonju Sogeumsan Grand Valley is open from 9:00 a.m. to

Travel May 17, 2024

A hundred foreign nationals participated in a Hangeul contest to mark the 627th anniversary of the birth of King Sejong, the architect of the Korean writing system. At the National Folk Museum of Korea on Wednesday, contestants from over 46 countries who were selected from some 500 applicants wrestled with Hangeul sentences as they were tested in dictation. “We have long wanted to build on the expanding awareness of Hangeul with grassroots participation,” a Culture Ministry official

Arts & Design May 15, 2024

K-pop girl group NewJeans will perform Tuesday for the first time since a dispute started between the group’s label Ador and Hybe, the label’s parent company, on April 22. The two-hour show, which starts at 7 p.m. on May 21, will mark the occasion of the official renaming of the Cultural Heritage Administration as the Korea Heritage Service. The five-member girl group is one of 12 K-pop singers and groups that will perform in front of Heungnyemun, one of the gates of Gyeongbokgung, a

K-pop May 15, 2024

Entrance fees to 76 historic sites in South Korea, including the popular royal palaces and shrine in Seoul and tombs across the country connected to the Joseon era (1392-1910), will be waived from Wednesday to Sunday to mark the renaming of the Cultural Heritage Administration as the Korea Heritage Service, the agency managing heritage work. The name change, which will take effect Friday and is part of larger efforts to overhaul the agency, was passed by the National Assembly in April 2023. &ldq

Culture May 14, 2024

In an era of instant messaging, appreciating longer forms of the arts, such as orchestral performances, has become challenging. That’s why quality matters more now than ever, because the way culture is presented determines how people explore their inner thoughts, according to Michal Emanovsky, the director of the Czech Center Seoul. “To be honest, money is a very important part of making decisions about projects,” Emanovsky said in a recent interview with The Korea Herald. The

People May 13, 2024