MMCA reveals recent works from artist residency program

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art on Friday kicked off “MMCA Residency Changdong Report 2018,” an annual exhibition that introduces works of artists currently under the nation-led museum’s residency program.Over 10 days, the artists will introduce works and performances produced during their residencies at a studio in Chang-dong, Dobong-gu, Seoul.  Artist Sung Nak-hee’s 2018 work "Untitled Changdong2 (detail)" (MMCA)Seven artists from five different countries are currently under

Nov. 23, 2018

Annual fair to show how crafts can enrich daily life

The Craft Trend Fair 2018 will introduce the latest trends in the craft market, giving visitors a chance to rethink the value of crafts in our lives. The annual trend fair, in its 13th year, is hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and run by the Korea Craft & Design Foundation. This year’s event will take place from Thursday to Sunday at the Convention and Exhibition Center in southern Seoul.The event, dedicated to the promotion and commercialization of local craft market, invit

Nov. 19, 2018

Korean Empire period works show advent of modern Korean art

The short-lived Korean Empire (1897-1910), also known as the Daehan Empire, an interregnum between Joseon and Japanese colonial rule, is often seen as a dark period in Korean history when the 600-year-old kingdom struggled to remain independent amid the onslaught of foreign powers, especially Japan. “Art of Korean Empire: The Emergence of Modern Art,” running through Feb. 6 at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art’s Deoksugung branch, looks at the period through art produced during

Nov. 18, 2018

Rookie designers aim to be Korea’s next fashion giants

The runway is always admired by emerging designers who want to be the next Karl Lagerfeld, Alessandro Michele or Christopher Bailey. But not all labels make their way into the spotlight. Though Seoul is not one of the “big four” fashion capitals of the world, it has no lack of young brave hearts who hope to make it big. At the 2019 spring-summer Hera Seoul Fashion Week in October, two designer brands, Dew E Dew E and By.D’By, took a big leap at the Seoul Collection, the larger of the two shows t

Nov. 15, 2018

[Weekender] From Chanel to Gucci: Korean women turn into designer rent-a-holics

It is 7 a.m. on a Monday. Hong Mi-jin, 35, an office worker in Seoul, makes a fresh pot of coffee and jumps into the shower. Twenty minutes later, she comes out with a big towel wrapped around her hair. Rummaging through her closet, she picks out a Theory knit top and matching block skirt, Sandro tweed jacket and Givenchy’s Antigona bag -- a set of items rented from different luxury rental sites. “It is stressful for me to choose what to wear, what bag to carry, which heels to go with the wardro

Nov. 15, 2018

Will Park Su-geun beat his own record?

Park Su-geun’s 1961 work “People at the Marketplace” will be auctioned on Nov. 21 at K Auction’s November sale.Park is a Korean painter known for his artworks that portray the daily life of the Korean people in the mid-20th century. Park Su-geun’s “People at the Marketplace” (K Auction)The estimated price for “People at the Marketplace” is 4 billion won-5.5 billion won ($3.5 million-$4.9 million), the auction house said. The work was owned by a foreign collector for about 40 years before it was

Nov. 9, 2018

Herald Artday to hold offline auction

Herald Artday, a subsidiary of Herald Corp., is holding an offline auction on Nov. 14 at uJung Art Center in southern Seoul.The art auction will comprise 122 works, covering a wide range of art by renowned artists as well as ceramics from the late Joseon era.It will feature numerous works of art of renowned Korean artists, including Kim Whan-ki, Chang Uc-chin and Yun Hyong-keun, among many others. It will also comprise works by international artist such as Yayoi Kusama and Andy Warhol. Korean pa

Oct. 31, 2018

Han Jeong-sun’s exhibition ‘Untamed Thoughts’ shows quest to free a caged spirit

Artist Han Jeong-sun’s exhibition “Untamed Thoughts” showcases her allegorical paintings, which deal with wildness and breaking free of constraints, at a local cultural center called The Forest in Nowon, Seoul. In Han’s view, capitalist societies with their repetitive daily routines have deprived contemporary people of their identities and their dignity. She sees contemporary civilization as a force that flattens individuality and represses the beast that is the human spirit. “Alice in Wonderlan

Oct. 31, 2018

Work and life examined

More than a century ago, the Lumiere brothers’ black-and-white documentary film “Workers Leaving the Lumiere Factory in Lyon” showed workers hurriedly exiting their workplace. The film survives as one of the most important records in the history of motion pictures.A century later, the late German artist and filmmaker Harun Farocki summoned the groundbreaking footage to yet another level of discourse. Farocki’s video installation titled “Workers Leaving the Factory in Eleven Decades” starts with

Oct. 28, 2018

Filmmaker Ahn Kearn-hyung wins SeMA-Hana Media Art Award

Korean nonfiction filmmaker Ahn Kearn-hyung was named the winner of this year’s SeMA-Hana Media Art Award, the Seoul Museum of Art announced Friday. The SeMA-Hana Media Art Award, founded in 2014, is awarded to a participating artist of Seoul Media City Biennale and is presented by the museum and Hana Financial Group. Ahn Kearn-hyung (SeMA) An installation view of “How to Stop Being Korean,” a 66-minute documentary introduced at Seoul Mediacity Biennale 2018 (SeMA)Ahn received the award in recog

Oct. 26, 2018

Yang Hae-gue receives 2018 Culture and Arts Award

Internationally recognized artist Yang Hae-gue on Wednesday was honored with the Republic of Korea Culture and Arts Award at a ceremony at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art’s Seoul branch. The award is annually given by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, with a presidential citation. Yang could not attend the ceremony, so a family member accepted it on her behalf. Korean artist Yang Hae-gue (Kukje Gallery)The award was given to five artists across five categories, incl

Oct. 24, 2018

Exhibition brings traditional folding screens into the foreground

Folding screens are a traditional form of art that was popular in Asia in the 19th and 20th centuries. The paneled artworks featuring paintings, patterns and calligraphy were used to decorate rooms, to highlight the presence of a powerful figure or as a backdrop for various ceremonies and rituals.The Amorepacific Museum of Art’s “Beyond Folding Screens” is a large-scale exhibition that brings the folding screen to the fore. “The Sun, Moon and Five Peaks,” an emblem of royal authority produced in

Oct. 23, 2018

Young South Koreans take fashion inspiration from Bernie Sanders and Jesse Jackson

Among young South Koreans, civic rights activist and Democratic presidential nominee Jesse Jackson’s 1988 campaign T-shirts and French fashion brand Balenciaga’s Bernie Sanders-inspired caps are some of the hottest fashion items at the moment.“What size is it?” “Has it been sold yet?” Comments like these quickly appear when well-kept secondhand Bernie Sanders caps are put up for sale in online communities, as a brand new one could cost nearly 350,000 ($310).A Jesse Jackson T-shirt and a Bernie S

Oct. 22, 2018

Seoul fashion scene unfolds at Dongdaemun Design Plaza

2019 Spring-Summer Hera Seoul Fashion Week wrapped up its six-day run Saturday at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in central Seoul, where fashion ruled both inside and outside the venue.A total of 42 established fashion brands and 24 rookie designer brands showcased their creations for the upcoming spring-summer season, through the Seoul Collection and Generation Next, respectively. Meanwhile, fashion enthusiasts gathered to show off their own unique, stylish looks. A model presents a creation by Ti:bae

Oct. 22, 2018

[Weekender] Mountaineering clothing climbs down to city life

Korea is a mountainous country with mountains taking up 70 to 80 percent of the land mass. Though downtown areas may barely hint at the presence of mountains amid the skyscrapers and traffic, there are some visual reminders that Korea is a nation of mountains: middle-aged people dressed in mountaineering clothing without a hiking plan on their mind. The “athleisure” look of wearing clothes for athletic activities in everyday life has settled itself as more than a passing trend in the fashion sce

Oct. 18, 2018

Can Seoul Fashion Week ever be show for the people?

Dongdaemun Design Plaza has been swarming with crowds of “fashion people,” as the 2019 S/S Hera Seoul Fashion Week kicked off Monday. Fashionable visitors have been showing up in bold outfits, ready to show off their unique styles. According to the Seoul Design Foundation -- the state-funded institution in charge of running the event -- around 60,000 people visited the venue Monday and Tuesday.  A model presents creation by Youser during the 2019 Spring-Summer Hera Seoul Fashion Week fashion sho

Oct. 18, 2018

2D illustrations breathe life into luxury fashion

For fashion enthusiasts and luxury goods lovers, an exhibition of fashion illustrator Megan Hess’ work is soon to open in Seoul. The Australian illustrator is known across the world for her work with luxury fashion houses and celebrities. She became a big figure in the fashion scene after drawing the cover illustration for the “Sex and the City” book after the series became a hit.  Fashion illustrator Megan Hess speaks during a press event held Tuesday at The Seouliteum in eastern Seoul. (Yonhap

Oct. 16, 2018

Nam June Paik Art Center holds 10th anniversary exhibition

An elephant pulls a cart loaded with devices like television sets, radios, telephones and gramophone speakers while a Buddha statue -- sitting on the elephant under an umbrella -- leads the way ahead. These once dominant means of communication are featured in artist Nam June Paik’s work “Elephant Cart.” It is one of the works on display as part of “Art Commons, Nam June Paik,” which kicked off at the Nam June Paik Art Center on Thursday. The exhibition reintroduces Paik’s artworks, along with th

Oct. 14, 2018

Seoul Fashion Week ready for kickoff

2019 S/S Hera Seoul Fashion Week, a major fashion event for fashion insiders and outsiders, is set to begin its six-day run on Monday.The biennial event, hosted by the Seoul Design Foundation to cement the city’s status as Asia’s main fashion hub, is to take place at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza in central Seoul through Saturday. The exterior of the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (Seoul Design Foundation) Poster image for 2019 S/S Hera Seoul Fashion Week (Seoul Design Foundation)Menswear designer Woo Yo

Oct. 14, 2018

Seoul Auction to refund MMCA over 2003 sale of counterfeit painting

Seoul Auction is to refund the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art over the 2003 sale of a painting that has since been declared a counterfeit.During a parliamentary audit of the state museum on Thursday, Rep. Kim Jae-won of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party pointed out that the museum had bought a counterfeit of Rhee Seund-ja’s painting “Memory of Hidden Trees” and criticized the museum for lax management of its collection.Memory of Hidden Trees,” which has been declared a coun

Oct. 12, 2018