Culture Ministry launches investigation into 'Black Rubber Shoes' contract

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Thursday announced that it has launched a special investigation team that will look into a complaint filed about the contract for the comic and cartoon series “Black Rubber Shoes.” On Wednesday, the Korean Cartoonists Association filed a petition with the ministry to investigate the contract between the original creators of “Black Rubber Shoes” and publishing house Hyungseol that is alleged to have led to the death of Lee

March 30, 2023

Korean gardens to be showcased in 2025 exhibition in Paris

The beauty and ecological value of Korean gardens will be featured in Paris in 2025 in a major exhibition with an estimated cost of 15 billion won ($11.5 million), the Korean-French duo in charge of the project told The Korea Herald. Park Jung-wook and Regis Juvigny, co-presidents of K-Garden Association, said in Seoul last week that they are currently in the process of bringing their plan of showcasing the best aspects of Korean gardens in the Luxembourg Gardens in the heart of Paris. “Ja

March 29, 2023

Foreigners under 19 to get free admission to royal palaces, tombs in S. Korea

Foreigners under the age of 19 can visit major royal palaces and tombs without paying admission fees starting next month, the cultural heritage authority said Wednesday. The Cultural Heritage Administration said it has recently revised its rules on visits to royal palaces and tombs to include free admission for foreign minors. The rules will come into force Saturday, it added. Currently, all foreigners are required to pay admission fees when they visit those sites, while admission is free for Ko

March 29, 2023

Shamans, curses and superstitions in contemporary South Korea

In episode 15 of Netflix's "The Glory," the shaman character, who is involved in the antagonist Park Yeon-jin's shady family business, suddenly drops dead in the middle of performing a ritual, leaving viewers bewildered by the sudden plot twist involving a supernatural scene. Shamanism may appear out of place in a modern-day revenge thriller, but superstitions and shamanistic practices are not far removed from the daily lives of many Koreans, even in their tech-savvy and fast

March 28, 2023

'Protect creators before exulting in K-culture boom'

A committee set up in the aftermath of the death of cartoonist Lee Yoo-young, the original creator of hit cartoon and animation series “Black Rubber Shoes,” on Monday urged the fair treatment of creators. “It’s not the time to celebrate the popularity of K-culture. The most important thing is to protect the lives of creators and their self-esteem,” the committee said in a statement read during a press conference held at the National Assembly on Monday, adding th

March 27, 2023

[Photo News] Baekje 'refrigerator' unearthed

A kind of underground “refrigerator” which is believed to have been built in the Baekje Kingdom (18 BC to AD 660) has been unearthed at a site in Iksan, North Jeolla Province. The Cultural Heritage Administration announced Friday that it confirmed two low-temperature storage facilities made of stones at a construction site at Seodong Historical Park, at Geumma-myeon, Iksan-si. The two excavated units of similar sizes were located side by side. The facilities were both equipped with v

March 24, 2023

[Well-curated] Writers' paradise, Cheonggyecheon that you didn't know and sweet, sticky treats

For those who still love to handwrite their schedules on paper, or decorate their planners with colored pens and stickers, the small stationery shop All Write may be worth a visit. Located in Jongno-gu, central Seoul -- a 10-minute walk from Gyeongbokgung Station Exits No. 1 and No. 2, All Write is a store that doesn’t stand out in the calm, quiet neighborhood of Cheongunhyoja-dong. There is no sign or fancy entrance. Rather, the shop welcomes visitors with small potted plants. Unlike the

March 24, 2023

Gyeongbokgung Palace to open for spring nighttime viewing

The Joseon-era royal palace Gyeongbokgung will hold its annual spring nighttime viewing from April 5 to May 31, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced Thursday. Noted for its beautiful weeping cherry blossoms and azaleas during the season, the Gyeongbokgung nightscape presents a different vibe from the daytime. One of the highlights include the Gyeonghoeru, the largest two-story pavilion structure in Korea, where visitors can capture the scenery of cherry blossoms reflected on the nearby

March 23, 2023

KOCCA to hold open seminar on S. Korea's creative content business

Korea Creative Content Agency announced that its annual, open seminar Content Insight will be held at the Content Human Resource Campus, in Hongreung, Dongdaemun-gu, central Seoul, on March 30. Content Insight invites popular creative content experts to share their thoughts on the current and future trends of the Korean content business. Director Kang Yun-sung, who helmed the hit crime films “The Outlaws” (2017), “The Roundup” (2022) and Disney+’s noir series &ldquo

March 23, 2023

King to appoint palace royal guards in reenactment of court ceremony at Gyeongbokgung Palace

A reenactment of the Joseon Kingdom's royal guard appointment ceremony will take place at Heungnyemun Gate, the second inner gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace, at 2 p.m. on Sunday. Titled “The King Chooses His Palace Royal Guard,” the guard appointment ceremony event will be performed by some 200 people -- including 160 actors, 20 dancers and 20 musicians -- who will reimagine the ceremony based on historical records. During the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), a royal guard unit called t

March 22, 2023

Possible Goryeo remains discovered at construction site

A historical site and numerous cultural relics thought to date back to the Goryeo Kingdom (918-1392) have been found at a construction site in Sinyeong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, according to the Cultural Heritage Administration and a private association commissioned to conduct a preliminary survey of the site on Monday. An architectural history survey was launched in December at the site, which had been used as a parking lot and was in the process of being developed into an apartment complex. The

March 20, 2023

Rio Tinto has more work to do, cultural heritage audit finds

MELBOURNE - Rio Tinto has more work to do to protect Indigenous cultural heritage at its mines around the world, according to an independent audit of its practices, the world's biggest iron ore miner said on Monday. Rio Tinto commissioned the audit as part of a pledge to overhaul its practices after it destroyed culturally significant rock shelters at Juukan Gorge in Western Australia for an iron ore mine in 2020. The report noted improved practices particularly at Rio's iron ore ope

March 20, 2023

[From the Scene] ‘Art in Marche’ welcomes spring with fresh greens

On a lazy Saturday afternoon, the cheerful buzz of crowds and live music filled the air, complimented by fresh vegetable crops and colorful flowers on display in front of the National Theater of Korea's Haeorem Grand Theater, in central Seoul. Hosted by the National Theater of Korea, the “Art in Marche” is an open-air eco-friendly crop market where some 50 teams of farmers, artisanal food vendors and handicraftsmen offer their products. This year’s spring chapter of the &l

March 19, 2023

Pianist Cho Seong-jin "The Handel Project" tops Billboard's weekly classical album chart

South Korean pianist Cho Seong-Jin’s latest album, The Handel Project, has topped Billboard's Traditional Classical Albums weekly chart this week, according to the US magazine’s chart. The Handel Project, released on February 3, is a collection of three suites from Handel's first collection of Suites de pièces pour le clavecin, which are some of Cho's favorite pieces of music. The album also features Brahms's Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel, a pie

March 17, 2023

[Photo news] K-Arts Celebrates 30 years of nurturing artists

Some 30 years ago, the Korea National University of Arts, known as K-Arts, was established with a goal to provide top quality education so that Korean students would not have to go abroad to study the arts. It was a goal in which not many believed back them. After the opening of the music school in 1993, the theater, film, dance, art and traditional arts schools were introduced one after another. Now, K-Arts operates under 26 different departments across six schools -- the Schools of Music, Dram

March 17, 2023

[Well-curated] Knitting, luxury car exhibition and Spring adventures

A family day out at Children’s Grand Park Located in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, Children’s Grand Park is the perfect destination for a fun family day out. The park houses an amusement park which offers a wide range of family-friendly attractions and activities that are suitable for children of all ages. The park features thrilling rides for older children, who should not miss the opportunity to try out the Wave Swinger and the Drop Tower. In particular, the Family Coaster is wildly popular

March 17, 2023

Culture Ministry vows to protect creators' rights

Just three days after the news of the death of the cartoonist of the original "Black Rubber Shoes" broke, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced a series of measures to prevent similar tragedies. On Wednesday, the ministry announced that it plans to include specific provisions concerning secondary works in the standard contract for the comics field. Secondary works are creative works created by modifying, adapting or producing videos from the original. Under the plan, th

March 15, 2023

Koreans don’t sweat it when asking, ‘Will you marry me?’

“We’re having a June wedding, and he hasn’t proposed yet.” This oxymoronic statement is not that uncommon among Korean couples. Weirdly enough, a proposal, which usually involves someone on his or her knee nervously asking, “Will you marry me?” has little to do with asking for a hand in marriage in Korea. More often than not, Korean brides get proposed to after all the preparations are done, sometimes only days before the wedding. Unlike Western norms of marri

March 14, 2023

[Photo News] Japanese tram track discovered in Gwanghwamun

OLD TRAM TRACK -- A tram track used during the Japanese colonial period (1910-45) was discovered between September and October last year at the excavation site of Woldae, an elevated stage for royal ceremonies in front of Gwanghwamun, Gyeongbokgung's main gate. The tram was in service from 1917 to 1966, and ran on a Y-shaped train track on what is today's Sejong-ro, and connected Anguk-dong and Hyoja-dong via Woldae.

March 13, 2023

Hallyu's popularity to remain for years to come: survey

A majority of Koreans and foreigners believe that Hallyu, or the Korean Wave, is likely to continue riding the tide of globalization for a long time to come, according to a recent Corea Image Communication Institute survey aimed at probing people's views on popular topics. The CICI’s multiple-choice survey, titled “AI, ChatGPT and Hallyu,” involved 471 participants -- 257 Koreans and 214 foreigners who either visited or resided in Korea. More than 60 percent of the parti

March 13, 2023