Korean artist Yoo Hwa-soo has won the 23rd SongEun Art Award for his installation work, “Gesture of Cultivation,” which was shown at the 23rd edition of the SongEun Art Award Exhibition, the SongEun Art and Cultural Foundation announced Friday. A group exhibition at the SongEun Art Space in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul, showcases artworks by 20 artists shortlisted for the foundation's annual award. A total of 512 artists applied for the 23rd edition of the award. Born in 1979, Yoo

Arts & Design Jan. 9, 2024

With museums and galleries announcing their exhibitions for the year, the issue of gender is getting attention at two major museums in the country. The privately run Hoam Museum of Art will showcase “Women and Buddhism” in March, the largest-ever exhibition examining East Asian Buddhist art from a new perspective through the lens of gender. The exhibition will present masterworks of Buddhist art in cooperation with overseas art institutions. “(The exhibition) will showcase the

Culture Jan. 8, 2024

Galleries come and go with the changing tides of the art market. When the market booms, new galleries mushroom, but in lean times, many disappear. Chung Seung-jin, director of G Gallery in Seoul, has held on to her commitment to art, and her gallery, for the past 10 years. The gallery was first founded in 2013 in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, and moved to Cheongdam-dong, an affluent neighborhood in southern Seoul, four years later to meet more collectors. “The last 10 years were never easy.

Culture Jan. 3, 2024

Jung Kang-ja is one of the few female artists who led Korean experimental art that flourished in the 1960s to 1970s. Yet, the artist remains relatively unfamiliar to many. Arario Gallery sheds light on the artist’s path, presenting some 70 works in Shanghai and Seoul. The exhibition in Shanghai titled “Jung KangJa: Life Goes On” gives a glimpse of Jung’s path from the 1980s to 2000s, showing many of the works that were inspired by the artist's travels across South Am

Arts & Design Jan. 2, 2024

As 2024 begins, those born in the Year of the Dragon are celebrating the return of their zodiac sign after 12 years. The year 2024 is the Year of the Blue Dragon, known as the “gapjin” year in the 60-year sexagenary cycle, which is based on 10 heavenly stems and 12 earthly branches. The Korea Herald interviewed five individuals born in the Year of the Dragon to hear their wishes before Lunar New Year on Feb. 10. Kim Hye-young, born in 1988, lives on Jeju Island. The new year is par

Culture Jan. 1, 2024

German artist Christoph Ruckhaberle attempts to bring out the subjects of his paintings as if declaring art should not be something conceptual, but rather something to enjoy. The exhibition “Waking up the pictures: Christoph Ruckhaberle” invites people to mix and mingle with his art. The artist’s first-ever solo exhibition in Seoul shows some 160 paintings from 2007 to 2023, including those especially created for this exhibition. Based in Leipzig, Ruckhaberle is one of the lead

Arts & Design Dec. 15, 2023

Artists tell us about their inner worlds through the art they create. Two young Korean artists -- Hwang Sue-yon and Choi Yoon-hee -- unveil their inner selves, both fragile yet strong, through the medium of paintings and sculptures. The emerging artists are showing new works at G Gallery in Seoul at the exhibition “Thick Skin," which kicked off on Nov. 29. Hwang explores paper sculptures, created with paper and graphite. From a distance, the sculptures look as though they are made

Arts & Design Dec. 10, 2023

Online art platform ART Fin kicks off the exhibition “The Present” on Tuesday at ART Fin gallery in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul, bringing together seven artists -- Kwon Ji-young, Kim Su-cheol, Min Chan-wook, Bahk Young-hoon, Lee Gun-hee, Lee Si-san and Lee Yoon-jeong. Coinciding with the holiday season, part of the sales from the exhibition will be donated to groups supporting underprivileged children, according to ART Fin. The works on display include “Mycota,” an 80-cent

Arts & Design Dec. 10, 2023

Christmas-themed media facade in Myeong-dong Shinsegae Department Store in Myeong-dong, Seoul, has become a must-visit Christmas spot in the city. The building’s facade has been transformed into a splendid Christmas lights display with the theme of “Magical Winter Fantasy.” Once the Mitsukoshi Department Store in the 1930s during the Japanese colonial era, the building holds historical significance, and started to grab attention a couple of years ago during the holiday season

Culture Dec. 8, 2023

Upon opening the door to her studio, one is overwhelmed by the plethora of oil paintings – both visually and olfactorily. In a room where Yi Yi Jeong-eun dries her paintings are oil paint tubes stacked in rows and wafting with their smell. Painter Yi Yi moved her studio to a four-bedroom apartment -- where she also resides -- in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province about a year ago. She wanted to find a bigger place where she can separate where she dries her oil paintings, from where she stores and pa

Arts & Design Dec. 4, 2023

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea marked its 10th anniversary with an international symposium under the title, “Potential from the Unknown: Contemporary Art and Institutions” at the Multi-Project Hall of MMCA Seoul on Friday. The three sections of the symposium -- “After Institutions,” “From the Perspectives of Asia” and “Ecological Exposure” -- brought together some 15 art experts, including curator Karen Archey from Sted

Arts & Design Dec. 1, 2023

Reflect at must-see MSCHF exhibition Thought-provoking artworks by MSCHF, an art collective that refuses to be confined by gallery walls, are on show at Daelim Museum in Anguk-dong, Seoul. Titled “Nothing Is Sacred,” the exhibition brings together 130 works by MSCHF including paintings, interactive games and fashion objects created by the group since 2016. At a glance, the collective's pieces look like playful and funny graphic designs. However, the works are designed to challen

Culture Dec. 1, 2023

The Samsung Foundation of Culture will collaborate with overseas cultural institutions to restore works of Korean cultural heritage, bringing the works to the Leeum Museum of Art for the restoration process, the foundation announced Wednesday. “Banquet for the Governor of Pyeong-an,” owned by the Peabody Essex Museum in Massachusetts, is currently under restoration and is the first work to benefit from the collaboration. The folding screen painting from the 19th century depicts a ban

Arts & Design Nov. 29, 2023

The 118-year history of Van Cleef & Arpels, a French luxury jewelry brand, is showcased at a world-touring exhibition titled “Van Cleef & Arpels: Time, Nature, Love" which opened in Seoul on Nov. 18. More than 300 jewelry creations, watches and precious objects and more than 90 original archives are brought together at the exhibition, which arrived in Seoul after touring Italy in 2019, China in 2022 and Saudi Arabia earlier this year. The delicate beauty of the gems is breatht

Arts & Design Nov. 27, 2023

PKM Gallery, one of the leading commercial galleries in South Korea, is offering two exhibitions of artists with whom it has long-standing relationships: British contemporary artist Toby Ziegler and Korean sculptor Kwon Jin-kyu. The gallery, located in Samcheong-dong in northern Seoul, brought together works by the two artists in separate exhibitions, “Toby Ziegler, Broken Images” and “Kwon Jin Kyu: The Reliefs.” Ziegler has shown his works at the Seoul-based gallery ever

Arts & Design Nov. 24, 2023