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Kwon Mee-yoo

Korea Times Politics & City Reporter

Often found at theaters and museums, Kwon Mee-yoo has covered a wide range of cultural fields from K-pop and dramas to theater and fine art for over a decade. Now as K-Culture Desk editor, she tries to connect Korean culture with global readers through fresh perspectives.

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Music

Musical gala celebrates Korea Times' 75-year legacy, power of music

To mark its 75th anniversary, The Korea Times brings the magic of musical theater to the concert stage with a gala “The Musical,” helmed by music director and conductor Kolleen Park. Featuring Kang Hye-jung, Michael K. Lee and Choi Jae-rim, the concert pays tribute to the legacy of Korea's oldest English daily and the universal language of music. Born to a Korean father and Lithuanian American mother, Park made her debut as music director for the Korean original musical "The Last Empress" in the 1990s and has since led major productions including "Aida" and "She Stars!" over the past three decades. Her experience extends to large-scale events and concerts, such as serving as director for the opening ceremony of the 2014 Asian Para Games and, more recently, directing the opening and closing ceremonies of the 106th National Sports Festival in Busan in October. A constant challenger in her own right, Park is also active on stage as an actor, best known for her portrayal of Diana in the musical "Next to Normal." This summer, she broke new ground by taking on the traditionally male role

Nov 6, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo
Musical gala celebrates Korea Times' 75-year legacy, power of music
Books

PHOTO K-Book Festival in London

Korean writer Cheon Seon-ran, center, speaks during a book talk hosted by the Korean Cultural Centre UK (KCCUK) at Foyles on Charing Cross Road in London, Saturday (local time). Known for her sci-fi novels "A Thousand Blues" and "The Midnight Shift," Cheon discussed the inspiration behind her works, explaining how she "revisited what it means to be human through the concept of a robot with emotions." The event was part of K-Book Festival, held at the downtown London bookstore to celebrate Korean storytelling ranging from award-winning fiction to webtoons. Courtesy of KCCUK

Nov 3, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo
[PHOTO] K-Book Festival in London
Arts & Theater

Korean Art Odyssey How Korean art first entered Western museums

DRESDEN, Germany/SALEM, Mass. — Korean culture may be everywhere today, but the path to discovering Korea’s deeper story runs through museum galleries — rooms where celadon glows like moonlight, lacquer shimmers in shadow and history whispers from vitrines. Beyond Korea’s borders, however, these spaces have long been few and small, unevenly researched and eclipsed by the scale of Chinese and Japanese collections. But the tide is turning. A new generation of curators is rediscovering overlooked treasures, expanding collections through strategic acquisitions and reimagining how Korean art can be seen with digital tools and approached through pop-culture touchpoints to draw in new audiences. To understand how far Korean art has come on the global stage, one must first trace how it arrived there. The story of Korean collections in overseas museums is complex, shaped by diplomacy, colonial entanglements, scholarly pursuit and, at times, sheer serendipity. This opening chapter turns to the origins of that journey: who first collected Korean objects, how they were acquired and why they

Oct 31, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo and Park Han-sol
[Korean Art Odyssey] How Korean art first entered Western museums
K-pop

BTS’ RM urges world leaders to support creativity at APEC CEO Summit

At the APEC CEO Summit, BTS leader RM became the first K-pop artist to address the APEC event as a keynote speaker, delivering a speech in English that wove together his personal journey, the global rise of K-pop and a direct appeal to policymakers: invest in the arts and the people who make them. Speaking before government and business leaders from across the Asia-Pacific, RM, whose real name is Kim Nam-joon, began by reflecting on BTS’ early struggles to gain recognition outside Korea. “BTS first started to go outside Korea about 10 years ago,” he said. “And back then, we didn’t dream of what we see today.” He recounted the steep cultural barriers the group faced when trying to bring their Korean-language music into the English-speaking world. “Trying to get on mainstream media through our music was like doing an experiment and a huge challenge. It was a test to see if music in Korean can work on the global stage,” he said. "When we said we are artists from Korea, they didn’t ask us about our music. They asked, 'Are you from North Korea or South Korea?' 'Where on eart

Oct 29, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo
BTS’ RM urges world leaders to support creativity at APEC CEO Summit
K-pop

Jennie marks Hangeul Day with new Korean font Zen Serif

BLACKPINK member and successful solo K-pop artist Jennie is celebrating Hangeul Day by highlighting the beauty of the Korean alphabet through the release of a new typeface. Her label OA Entertainment announced the launch of Zen Serif, a new Korean font that combines traditional Korean aesthetics and contemporary design sensibilities, on Thursday, coinciding with Hangeul Day, which commemorates the creation of the Korean writing system. The agency explained that Zen Serif was designed with the hope that more people would find Hangeul both practical and visually appealing. The style minimizes excessive ornamentation and incorporates soft curves, reflecting OA Entertainment’s attention to detail. By blending elements of the calligraphic black letter type style with the elegance of Hangeul, the font achieves a distinctive and harmonious look. The font is available for free use, though the label restricts its application in political contexts or in any manner that promotes violence, discrimination or violates the rights of others. In collaboration with Meta, OA Entertainment also made Zen S

Oct 9, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo
Jennie marks Hangeul Day with new Korean font Zen Serif
Books

Sugar-dusted Korean bestseller 'To the Moon' takes off in English edition

When three women pool their modest salaries to gamble on cryptocurrency, it’s less about chasing profits than chasing a future that always seems just out of reach. “To the Moon,” the first novel novel by Korean writer Jang Ryu-jin published in an English edition, is a bittersweet tale of class, sisterhood and fragile hope in the face of stagnant wages and stalled dreams. Before she wrote about women tracking crypto charts instead of office clocks, Jang was living that very office life herself — working at a tech company in Pangyo, often dubbed Korea’s Silicon Valley. When her first short story “The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work” appeared on the Changbi Publisher’s website in 2018, it quickly went viral. Readers, many of them young office workers, saw themselves in her honest, sharply observed depiction of corporate life — a realism so vivid that it briefly caused the website to crash due to the overwhelming traffic. Now, with “To the Moon” published in English by Bloomsbury in June, Jang’s stories are reaching a wider readership — thanks in no small part to tra

Sep 27, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo
Sugar-dusted Korean bestseller 'To the Moon' takes off in English edition
Arts & Theater

‘Maybe Happy Ending’ returns to Seoul in October after Broadway triumph

Following a historic run on Broadway where it won six Tony Awards — including Best Musical, Best Book and Best Original Score — the Korean original musical “Maybe Happy Ending” is returning to Seoul for a 10th anniversary production. The new season will run from Oct. 30, 2025, to Jan. 25, 2026, at Doosan Art Center’s Yonkang Hall. Created by writers Will Aronson and Hue Park, “Maybe Happy Ending” tells a tale of two outdated Helperbots, Oliver and Claire, who discover what it means to love and be loved, in near-future Seoul. This anniversary production not only marks a major milestone for the show but also celebrates its unprecedented journey from a Korean original to global success. As the first Korean musical co-written by a Korean writer to premiere in Korea and go on to dominate American theater’s most prestigious awards, the show occupies a singular place in Korean theater history. “To have this story continue for 10 years feels like a small miracle. We’re especially grateful to the audiences who have joined us on this journey. We hope the upcoming performances

Sep 9, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo
‘Maybe Happy Ending’ returns to Seoul in October after Broadway triumph
Opinion

Do national labels still matter in contemporary art?

Does it still matter where an artist is from? It is a question I keep coming back to, even when I know better. Despite years of writing about contemporary art, I still catch myself asking artists and curators some version of this: “What is the Koreanness in your work?” I know it’s a tired and perhaps even reductive question, especially in a global art world that thrives on transnational conversations and hybrid identities. But I ask it anyway. Maybe out of habit. Maybe out of a quiet obsession to trace a thread, to name something uniquely Korean before it disappears into the haze of global aesthetics. That question feels particularly timely now, as the global art world converges on Seoul this month. September has become the undisputed peak of Korea’s art calendar, with Frieze Seoul and Kiaf Seoul drawing the world’s top gallerists, curators and collectors to the city. Major museums and galleries align their schedules to put forth their most ambitious offerings of the year. The streets buzz with exhibitions, after-hours viewings and parties that stretch into the night. So, what

Sep 3, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo
Arts & Theater

FRIEZE 2025 Takashi Murakami returns to Seoul with smiling flowers, 'Superflat' philosophy

Wearing a hat in the shape of his signature smiling flower and a large Panda pendant around his neck, Takashi Murakami greeted Seoul with a grin as playful and vivid as his art. For the Japanese pop art icon, who has shaped the art world with his “Superflat” aesthetic, the outfit itself becomes another extension of his art. Twelve years after his last solo exhibition in Seoul, Murakami returns with “Seoul, Kawaii Summer Vacation,” a compact but impactful showcase of new works presented by Gagosian at APMA Cabinet, a project space inside the Amorepacific headquarters in central Seoul's Yongsan District. This is Murakami’s first Seoul solo since “Takashi in Superflat Wonderland” at Samsung Museum of Art Plateau in 2013 and follows his major 2023 retrospective “MurakamiZombie” at the Busan Museum of Art. This also is global mega gallery Gagosian’s third exhibition in Korea despite not having a permanent space in the country. Cute, flat and complicated The artist’s iconic smiling flowers are instantly recognizable from his merchandise and collaborations with K-pop music

Sep 2, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo
[FRIEZE 2025] Takashi Murakami returns to Seoul with smiling flowers, 'Superflat' philosophy
Trends

‘Hallyu’ style defines Korean identity, CICI survey shows

As Korea’s cultural influence continues to rise, from blockbuster K-dramas to the growing global appetite for Korean cuisine, the question of what defines "Koreanness" has become more relevant than ever. A new survey by the Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI) sheds light on this evolving identity, showing how K-culture has emerged as a central force in shaping perceptions of Korea both at home and abroad. Conducted from Aug. 11-31, the survey gathered responses from 406 people — 203 Koreans and 203 foreigners who have either lived in or visited Korea. Participants were asked to select multiple items they associate with Koreanness and identify the directions in which K-culture may develop. When asked what foreigners would associate with Korean identity, an overwhelming majority of both Korean (94.58 percent) and foreign (93.1 percent) respondents chose the “hallyu” (Korean wave) style. This encompasses K-pop, Korean dramas, films, beauty and fashion, all of which have become Korea’s most recognizable cultural exports. In other words, for many Koreans and foreigners alike

Sep 2, 2025By Kwon Mee-yoo
‘Hallyu’ style defines Korean identity, CICI survey shows
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