AROUND TOWN 2

Club Octagon

Nonhyeon

Near the New Hilltop Hotel in Nonhyeon, this club is notable for its stylish interior and elite clientele. The venue offers a club stage, lounge bar and dining area to satisfy any night out after work or on the weekend. Near exit 4 of Hakdong Station on subway line 7. For more information, call (02) 516-8847.

Club Volume

Itaewon

Offering a venue for specially-themed weekly events and world-class DJs, Club Volume is located in the Crown Hotel near Noksapyeong Station. Club Volume was listed by Time magazine among the "10 things to do in 24 hours in Seoul." For more information, call 1544-2635.

Once in a Blue Moon

Apgujeong

Once in a Blue Moon is one of the best known and well established jazz clubs in the city. It features live jazz sets from two different bands every night, usually starting at 7:30 p.m. It is located between the Hakdong intersection and Galleria department stores in the posh district of Apgujeong. For more information, call (02) 549-5490 or visit www.onceinabluemoon.co.kr.

Club Answer

Cheongdam

Club Answer, chosen as one of the five hottest clubs in Seoul by CNN, provides a spacious interior and brilliant lighting systems, with world renowned DJs filling the stage. Club Answer is located in the classy area of Cheongdam, a district known to lead the party culture of Seoul. Located near exit 13 of Cheongdam Station on subway line 7. For more information, call (02) 514-4311 or visit www.clubanswer.co.kr.

Club Ellui

One of the largest clubs in Asia and located under Hotel Ellui, world-class DJs such as Alex Kenji and Ferry Corsten feature in weekend lineups. Located near exit 13 of Cheongdam Station on subway line 7. For more information, call 1577-9669 or visit www.ellui.net.

Luv Superlounge

Nestled in the heart of Itaewon, Luv Superlounge offers a wide selection of drinks, and a solid sound system with resident DJ AndiNuman from New Zealand. Located near exit 1 of Itaewon Station on subway line 6. For more information, call (02) 794-8898 or visit ko-kr.facebook.com/luvsuperlounge.

Club Double Eight

Sinsa

Opened in 2010, Club Double Eight takes clubbing to a whole new level. Located in Gangnam, it provides diverse hotel promotions and features weekend lineups with global DJs. Located near exit 1 of Sinsa Station on subway line 3. For more information, call (02) 543-8803 or visit cafe.naver.com/doubleeight.

Club Mute

Club Mute is a boutique club with exquisitely designed decorations and a custom-tailored sound system. Located near exit 1 of Itaewon Station on subway line 6. For more information, call (02) 796-6853 or visit www.clubmute.com.

Dojo

Work hard, play hard and sleep later. Lying underground Noxa in the thriving Kyonggridan neighborhood, Dojo is the latest edition to the clubbing nightlife in Seoul. Popular local DJs offer nonstop tunes for energetic dancing until dawn with weekday drink specials and enthusiastic crowds of longtime expats. For more information, call (02) 790-1334.

‘Hwanhee'

Gyeonggi Arts Center

Through Aug. 22

The Gyeonggi Arts Center is currently hosting a series of traditional Korean dance and musical performances through August 22. This exciting venture, which got off to a vigorous start with a thunderous performance on March 21, centers on telling traditional Korean tales through the medium of traditional dance and music. A selection of past performances include: "Eunwolloo," a story that hinges on the parallels of loneliness of human nature to that of the moon; "Buchaechum," also known as the fan dance, which constitutes one of the most frequently performed Korean folk dances, usually performed by a group of female dancers in coordination; and "Nongakmoo," a dance, typically enjoyed by farmers in the bygone years, that was performed with extra alacrity so as to invigorate them while working in the field and alleviate their exhausted spirit. Tickets cost 14,000 won. For more information, call (031) 230-3200 or visit www.ggac.or.kr.

‘All (is) Vanity'

Seoul Museum of Art

Through Aug. 9

The Seoul Museum of Art is currently holding an exhibition on the symbolism of Vanitas in the arts through August 9. Vanitas refers to a particular school of artistic symbolism, popularized in seventeenth-century Europe, particularly in Flanders. Translated from Latin as "vanity," in its antediluvian sense of the word, Vanitas works of art sought to demonstrate the utter futility of life on Earth and the pursuits, pleasures, and aspirations of earthly life. Consequently, the most common motifs found in early Vanitas paintings included the human skull, burning candles, and decaying flowers.

While such morbid references may seem unpleasantly macabre and a distant, outdated reality, one can draw plenty of parallels to the seventeenth century's preoccupation with man's mortality with the twenty-first century's consumerist and impersonal societal landscape. To be sure, the benefits of modern existence are manifold. Yet while such advantages can only come with the adoption of a fast-paced, individualistic life, they are often enjoyed to the detriment of interpersonal connections. As such, no other time in history does the idea of fleeting value and consequence as embodied by the Vanitas genre seem more appropriate than in the hollow meaninglessness of 2015.For more information, call (02) 395-0100 or visit www.seoulmuseum.org.

‘Magnum's First'

The Museum of Photography, Seoul

Through Aug. 15

To herald in the 130th anniversary of bilateral relations between Korea and France in 2016, a retrospective photography exhibition will be held at the Museum of Photography from April 4 to Aug. 15. Organized in part by Magnum Photos, one of the world's most eminent photography agencies, "Magnum's First" will feature photo-essays composed of original black and white vintage prints shot by the eight iconic photo journalists featured: Henri Cartier-Bresson, Marc Riboud, IngeMorath, Ernest Haas, Jean Marquis, Werner Bischof, Robert Capa, and Erich Lessing. Located near exit 2 of Mongchontoseong Station on subway line 8. For more information, call (02) 0418-1315 or visit www.photomuseum.or.kr.

‘Bonjour, La France’

Seongnam Arts Center

July 29-Oct. 11

The Seongnam Arts Center will be hosting an exhibition on contemporary French art from July 29 to Oct. 11. The exhibition will display approximately 50 to 60 pieces from 22 different artists, including Valerie Belin, Miguel Chevalier, Robert Combas, Bernard Frize and Lionel Sabatte who specialize in diverse media,. Tickets cost 8,000 won for adults and 5,000 won for students. For more information, call (031) 783-8000 or visit www.snart.or.kr.

‘Lee Quede: An Epic of Liberation’

National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Deoksugung

Through Nov. 1

“Situation” by Lee Quede will be on display at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art through Nov. 1 at its Deoksugung branch. / Courtesy of MMCA

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art will be holding a special retrospective of Korean artist Lee Quede’s work at its Deoksugung branch through Nov. 1 to coincide with the 70th anniversary of Korea’s liberation. Until recently, Lee Quede and his legacy were forgotten, deliberately omitted from the national narrative due to his alleged loyalty to the North. Fortunately, his good name and unparalleled importance in Korean art history have been restored in recent years, as Lee was in his time the foremost embodiment of the artist as a social activist. From 1937 to 1950, his most prolific years, Lee sought to incorporate Korean history and fundamental traditions into his work, thereby founding a new artistic form that emancipated itself from the debilitating effects of Japanese influence. The exhibition is divided into three sections, each dedicated to an integral time period that helped shape and further Lee’s style and approach to art. Admission is free. For more information, call (02) 2188-6000 or visit www.mmca.go.kr.

‘The Liminal Space'

Gallery Baton

Through Aug. 1

Gallery Baton is currently holding an exhibition that highlights the work of three up-and-coming Irish painters through August 1. Among the featured painters: Carol Anne McGowan, a graduate from N.C.A.D. in 2006, has been featured at various prominent venues and exhibitions, such as the KunstraumKreuzberg/ Bethanian in Berlin and the Royal Hibernian Academy's 178th Annual Exhibition in Dublin. In addition, David O'Kane studied in Leipzig under Professor Neo Rauch, a preeminent German artist, and has lived up to the public's regard for his rising star with numerous awards, scholarships, and residencies. Meanwhile, EamonO'Kane, who rounds out the Irish artistic trifecta, works mostly with themes of memory and travel, and dabbles in large-scale panoramas in his work. For more information, call (02) 597-5701 or visit www.gallerybaton.com.

Ansel Adams

Sejong Center for the Performing Arts*

Aug. 20-Oct. 19

“Gates of the Valley” by Ansel Adams will be on display at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts from Aug. 20 to Oct. 19. / Courtesy of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts

The Sejong Center for the Performing Arts will be holding a photography exhibition of Ansel Adams's iconic work from Aug. 20 to Oct. 19. Ansel Adams was an American photographer and environmentalist, whose black-and-white landscape photographs of the splendor of the American West, especially Yosemite National Park, have become symbolic images of the natural, uncultivated beauty of the Wild West. In addition, Adams helped found the San Francisco-based photography group, "Group f/64," whose members' modus operandi consisted of producing sharply focused images that infused clarity and depth into their photographs. Tickets cost 15,000 won for adults, 13,000 won for university students, and 10,000 won for students. For more information, call (070) 4288-5177 or visit www.anseladams.kr.

‘Playmobil Art'

July 25-Oct. 11

The Seongnam Arts Center will be holding an exhibition centered on Playmobil toys through July 25 to October 11. Familiar to millions of children around the world, Playmobil figurines first made their debut in 1975, and have come to rival other successful toy lines. The exhibition will incorporate a myriad of artists from Korea, France, Italy, and Austria, who will rework classic paintings and photographs, running the gamut of Monet to the Beatles' famed Abbey Road snapshot, by using Playmobil toys to replace the subjects. Tickets cost 12,000 won for adults, 10,000 won for students, and 8,000 won for children. For more information, call (02) 3143-4360 or visit www.iqbox.co.kr.

Kim Young-gap

Ara Art Center

Through Sept. 28

The Ara Art Center is holding an exhibition of Kim Young-gap's photography through Sept. 28. Enthralled by the natural beauty of Jeju Island, Kim Young-gap eschewed the accouterments of modern life, instead seeking out to capture the region with its rolling pastures, azure waters, and towering mountains on film for over twenty years before succumbing to ALS in 2005. Kim did not use any filters, Photoshop, or other image-altering techniques or devices. As such, the beauty captured within the perimeters of film is stunningly and organically true to life. Prior to his untimely departure, Kim also helped build a gallery to house his stunning panoramic prints. Tickets cost 10,000 won for adults, 8,000 won for adolescents, and 6,000 won for children. For more information, call (02) 737-2505 or visit www.kimyounggap.com.

‘Visual Scandal'

KT&G Sangsangmadang Gallery

Through Aug. 30

A comprehensive exhibition featuring a lifetime's worth of work by preeminent graphic artist Raymond Savignac is currently being held at the KT & G SangsangMadang Gallery through August 30. One would be hard-pressed to find anyone who is unable to identify an original Savignac poster, for his use of explosively vivid colors, and humorous wit and simplicity are emblematic of the French illustrator's modus operandi. Tickets cost 7,000 won. For more information, call (02) 330-6223 or visit www.sangsangmadang.com.

‘Vivian Maier X Garry Winogrand'

Sungkok Art Museum

Through Sept. 20

The Sungkok Art Museum is currently holding an exhibition celebrating the lifelong work of two photographers each famous in their own right, Vivian Maier and Garry Winogrand, through Sept. 20. The exhibition is divided into two separate parts; the former, entitled "The Revealed World of Vivian Maier," is dedicated to the recently rediscovered, enigmatic Vivian Maier, a woman of multiple, and often contradictory facets: the illustrious photographer who left behind up to 100,000 images taken on her personal Rolleiflex of urban life; a nondescript nanny who took care of children on the North Shore of Chicago for some forty odd years. Whichever persona may be most ‘authentic,' Maier has quickly and undoubtedly concretized her legacy as one of the greatest street photographers of the twentieth century. The latter part of the exhibition centers on another maestro of street photography: Garry Winogrand. The more eminent of the two, Winogrand is primarily known for his portrayal of American life and its various social issues in the mid-twentieth century. Tickets cost 10,000 won for adults, 8,000 won for adolescents, and 6,000 won for children. For more information, call (02) 737-7650 or visit www.sungkokmuseum.com.

‘Andy Warhol Live'

DDP

Through Sept. 27

A retrospective exhibition, the very first of its kind in Korea, on the iconoclastic work of American artist Andy Warhol is currently on display at DDP through September 27. While best known as a behemoth figure in the visual art movement of the 1960s known as pop art, Andy Warhol dabbled in many forms and media of art, such as printmaking, silk screening, film, and music. He first kicked off his career in the 1950s with his whimsical drawings for commercial advertisements, a period during which he began to hone his artistic style. Among the countless cultural relics from Warhol's collection on display will be his most prominent paintings from the 1960s, which depict objects, events, and personalities that typify the iconic culture and status of America, such as Campbell's Soup Cans, Coca-Cola bottles, mushroom clouds, and Marilyn Monroe. Tickets cost 15,000 won for adults, 12,000 won for teenagers, and 8,000 won for children. For more information, call (02) 515-5662 or visit www.ddp.or.kr.

‘Sandro Chia: Fantasy and Myths'

Seoul Arts Center*

Through Oct. 4

The Seoul Arts Center will hold an exhibition of the work of the Italian artist July 3-October 4. Born a year after the bloody end of the Second World War, Sandro Chia is commonly touted as the "international reference of Italian transavantgarde art" as the leading figure in a movement that has spawned so many Italian neo-expressionist maestros. After traveling through Europe and India following his graduation from the Accademia di Belle Arti in Florence in 1969, Sandro Chia began exhibiting his work as "mythical conceptual art." This exhibition will be making its run in Seoul after successful turns in Singapore, Hong Kong, Manila, and New York. It is divided into four sections that will each delve more deeply into the inspiration, style, and psychology of a most enigmatic yet brilliant artist. Tickets cost 13,000 won. For more information, call (02) 1666-3539 or visit www.sac.or.kr.

‘Antoni Gaudi, Barcelona'

July 31-Nov. 1

The Seoul Arts Center will hold an exhibition honoring the unparalleled genius of Antoni Gaudi from July 31-Nov. 1. While he is chiefly known for the as of yet incomplete SagradaFamilia, the Roman Catholic church located in Barcelona, Spain, that is adorned with the trademark forms of Gaudi's combined Gothic and Art Nouveau artistic vision, Gaudi was also an accomplished carpenter, artist and all-around architect who paid meticulous attention to each and every detail that went into his creations. Immediately following his death, Gaudi's work suffered an extended period of neglect, for critics vehemently censured his excessively baroque style. Since the 1950s, however, Gaudi has enjoyed a rejuvenation of popularity, consecrated by both experts and laymen for his unique perspective and distinctive approach. Indeed, between 1984 and 2005, UNESCO declared seven of his works as World Heritage Sites. Tickets cost 15,000 won for adults, 13,000 won for university students, 10,000 won for students, and 8,000 won for children. For more information, call (070) 4191-2200 or visit www.antonigaudi.co.kr.

‘Africa Art Fair 2015'

Hyundai Arts Center

Through Aug. 23

The Hyundai Arts Center is hosting the 2015 Africa Art Fair through August 23. Since the days of European colonialism, Africa has continued to shoulder a reputation as a hub of poverty, rampant crime, and overall ill repute, a notion that is decisively more cogent than more positive images of a thriving people and culture. Yet in spite of such a plethora of misconceptions concerning the region, African artists, woodworkers, and sculptors from yore and the present have managed to create a prolific and vibrant artistic tradition. Thus, this fair aims to introduce African art to viewers who are largely unaware of its existence. More than 300 paintings, sculptures and various artworks by preeminent African artists, the likes of E.S. Tingatinga and N'doyeDouts, will be on display. Tickets cost 8,000 won. For more information, call (052) 202-6299 or visit www.hhiarts.co.kr.

Fernando Botero

Through Nov. 4

The Seoul Arts Center will be holding an exhibition of Fernando Botero's work from July 11 to November 4. Botero is a figurative artist and sculptor from Colombia. He is prevalently considered to be the most recognized artist alive today hailing from Latin America. Botero's endearing artistic style, which sees him molding or painting figures in extremely rotund, corpulent form, has enchanted people from all walks of life for many decades, and will be sure to captivate Korean visitors as well. Tickets cost 13,000 won for adults, 10,000 won for adolescents and 8,000 won for children. For more information, call (02) 580-1300 or visit www.sac.or.kr.

‘World Press Photo'

Busan Cultural Center

Aug. 1-30

The Busan Cultural Center will host an exhibition of photography taken and created by World Press Photo, an independent based in Amsterdam that most famously holds the world's largest and most prestigious press photography contest. Past entries from previous years will be on display for viewers to enjoy, including the finalists for this year's photography contest. Tickets cost 10,000 won. For more information, call (02) 2038-2267 or visit

www.wpph.co.kr.

The Children's Museum

National Museum of Korea

Open Run

The Children's Museum run by the National Museum of Korea provides an opportunity for children to see the lifestyles of Koreans in the past. The museum also exhibits duplicated versions of Korea's national treasures, which visitors can touch. In the "hands-on" activity room, children can play traditional Korean music instruments. Located near exit 2 of Ichon Station, subway line 4 and Jungang Line. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.museum.go.kr.

Gwacheon National Science Museum

Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province

The museum has revamped its programs, highlighted by a wider variety of natural history items such as dinosaurs and also items on space technology. Located near exit 5 of Seoul Grand Park Station, subway line 4. Tickets cost 2,000 won for children and 4,000 won for adults. For more information, call (02) 3677-1500 or visit www.sciencecenter.go.kr.

K-League Classic

Saturday, July 25

Seoul vs. Incheon

Seoul at 7 p.m.

Ulsan vs. Seongnam

Ulsan at 7 p.m.

Pohang vs. Gwangju

Pohang at 7 p.m.

Sunday, July 26

Jeonbuk vs. Suwon

Jeonju at 7 p.m.

Busan vs. Daejeon

Busan at 7 p.m.

Jeonnam vs. Jeju

Jeju at 7 p.m.

KBO League

Friday, July 24

KT vs. LG

Jamsil at 6:30 p.m.

Lotte vs. KIA

Gwangju at 6:30 p.m.

Doosan vs. NC

Masan at 6:30 p.m.

SK vs. Nexen

Mokdong at 6:30 p.m.

Samsung vs. Hanhwa

Daejeon at 6:30 p.m.

Jamsil at 6 p.m.

Gwangju at 6 p.m.

Masan at 6 p.m.

Mokdong at 6 p.m.

Daejeon at 6 p.m.

Tuesday, July 28

Hanhwa vs. Doosan

KT vs. Nexen

LG vs. Lotte

Sajik at 6:30 p.m.

NC vs. Samsung

Daegu at 6:30 p.m.

SK vs. KIA

Wednesday, July 29

Thursday, July 30

Gwacheon Seoul Race Track

The Gwacheon Seoul Race Track holds races from 10:30 a.m. to 5:10 p.m., every Saturday and Sunday. Get off at Seoul Racecourse Park Station, subway line 4, exit 3. For more information, call (02) 509-1114 or visit www.kra.co.kr.