Lifestyle - The Korea Times

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 [Classical Concerts]‘SAC 11am Concert’Seoul Arts Center*Until Dec. 8On every second Thursday of each month, an “11am Concert” will be performed at the Seoul Arts Center. Chong Park will host the shows with commentary, and coffee will be provided for free. With distinct soloists for each concert, the Korean Symphony Orchestra will perform at all of the concerts.Tickets cost 20,000 to 25,000 won. For more information, visit sac.or.kr or call (02) 580-1300. ‘La Traviata’Sejong Center for Performing ArtsNovember 8-13“La Traviata” will be performed at Sejong Center for Performing Arts from November 8 to 13./ Courtesy of Sejong Center for Performing Arts“La Traviata” directed by Henning Brockhaus and conducted by Sebastiano De Filippi is performed at Sejong Center for Performing Arts Nov. 8 to 13.“La Traviata” is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, and is known as one of opera’s greatest romances. The November performances will feature bari

Sep 1, 2016

Leading soprano Sumi Jo to build arts school in Changwon

Grammy-winning soprano Sumi Jo will establish an arts school in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province. / Korea Times FileBy Lee Jin-aLeading Korean soprano Sumi Jo will build an arts school in the city of Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province -- the hometown of her parents.On Tuesday, Jo and Ahn Sang-soo, the city mayor, signed a contract to establish the school. The starting date for construction has not yet been scheduled, the city said.According to the agreement, Jo will back the school that educates students to become global artists while the city will provide administrative and financial support.“Changwon is a special place for me because it is where my parents lived,” Jo said. “I would like to foster students to be artists who know how to share their talents with their community.”Following the agreement, Changwon appointed Jo as an honorary ambassador of culture for the city. 

Sep 1, 2016

Leading soprano Sumi Jo to build arts school in Changwon

Artists interpret human body into art

Artist Jeong Geum-hyung poses at Atelier Hermes in southern Seoul where her solo exhibition “Private Collection” is held. /  Courtesy of Atelier HermesBy Kwon Mee-yooThe human body has been one of the most important inspirations for artists throughout the ages. Two artists from very different generations and backgrounds are using their body in pursuit of art in very distinctive ways.Lee Kun-yong, 74, was the pioneer of experimental art in Korea back in the 1970s. An exhibit sheds light on the artist's earlier works of performance art using body and movement as a reflection of the social conditions of the time.Lee's exhibit "Event-Logical" at Gallery Hyundai features his signature "The Method of Drawing" series as well as photographs of his performances "Snail's Gallop" and "The Logic of Place." The term event-logical combines the two words that cannot co-exist but Lee used it to refer to his performances.Lee's "The Method of Drawing" is translated as body drawing in Korean as the artist questions the fundamentals of drawing with physicality. Unlike traditional painte

Aug 30, 2016

Gwangju Biennale art festival to open next week

The opening ceremony of the 2016 Gwangju Biennale, Asia's oldest contemporary art biennale, is set to kick off in the southwest city of Gwangju next week, the festival's foundation said Friday.During the ceremony, set to start at the plaza in front of the Gwangju Biennale Exhibition Halo at 6:40 p.m. Thursday, Park Yang-woo, chief of the Gwangju Biennale Foundation, is scheduled to open the Sept. 2-Nov. 6 exhibition that is dedicated to the exploration of the state and function of art.Gwangju Mayor Yoon Jang-hyun and Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Kim Jong-deok are to give a welcoming address and a congratulatory address, respectively. The foundation will also hold a ceremony to mark the appointment of actor Hyun Bin as a promotional ambassador for the event.The opening ceremony will be followed by the awarding of the Noon Awards to an established artist who has contributed to the development of art and a promising young artist, with a prize of $10,000 and $5,000, respectively.The festivities will culminate when Gwangju citizens release light-emitting diode balloons into the sk

Aug 26, 2016

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[Traditional]‘Fanta-Stick’Seoul Fanta-Stick TheaterThroughout 2016“Fanta-Stick” is performed daily at Seoul Fanta-Stick Theater on an open-ended run. The performance presents original representative Korean music, using traditional Korean instruments to create fusion gugak. Park Ji-hoon, Lee Seok-jae, Kwon Hyun-soo and Na Jung-suk play the main roles of Jangdan and Saemachi. The show also features Yang Ye-rim, Kim Jee, Kim Sae-jin, Yoon Sung-hwan, Kim Byung-soo and Shin Kwang-hee.Tickets cost 30,000 to 60,000 won. For more information, visit fanta-stick.co.kr or call (02) 3143-5959. ‘YOULL’Jeongdong TheaterUntil Dec. 31“YOULL,” a dance performance mixed with drama, will be staged at Jeongdong Theater until the end of 2016.The performance will bring a wide range of traditional modes of expression together, including Korean dance, theater, music and martial arts. By applying the heroic fantasy genre to this production, Jeongdong Theater hopes to broaden its popular appeal. Actors Jeon Jin-hong, Lee Hyuk, Park Ji-yeon and Cho Haneul wi

Aug 25, 2016

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[Classical Concerts]‘SAC 11am Concert’Seoul Arts Center*Until Dec. 8On every second Thursday of each month, an “11am Concert” will be performed at the Seoul Arts Center. Chong Park will host the shows with commentary, and coffee will be provided for free. With distinct soloists for each concert, the Korean Symphony Orchestra will perform at all of the concerts.Tickets cost 20,000 to 25,000 won. For more information, visit sac.or.kr or call (02) 580-1300. Sumi Jo: La Prima DonnaSeoul Arts CenterAug. 28World-renowned soprano Sumi Jo will have a concert celebrating the 30th anniversary of her international debut at the Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall on August 28.Jo’s first appearance on the international scene took place in 1986 as the prima donna in the opera “Rigoletto” at the Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi. Ever since, she has actively extended her role in various opera productions. “La Prima Donna” concert will feature songs from well-known operas, including “Caro Nome” from “Rigletto,” Liszt’s &l

Aug 25, 2016

Artist discovers interstices of city

“Seochon — Stone Wall” (2016) by Kim Ji-hea / Courtesy of the artistBy Kwon Mee-yooArtist Kim Ji-hea sees the city through different eyes. She has been rediscovering the cityscape by taking pictures and distorting the photos in an attempt to find hidden colors in the urban environment.At her latest exhibition held at Artside Gallery in Seochon, central Seoul, Kim broadens her perspective to people who live in the city, more specifically Seochon, one of Seoul’s oldest neighborhoods located next to Gyeongbok Palace.The title of the exhibit "Earnestly and Gently ... Blossom" comes from the name of two neighborhoods in Seochon: Tongeui-dong and Tongin-dong, which mean communicating earnestly and communicating gently, respectively.The exhibit features 16 new works by Kim, who majored in print but now works with photography."Though I studied print from the undergraduate to doctoral level, I always had this painterly sensitivity. So I often made a collage on top of copperplate prints, and photos were good sources for the collage work," Kim said in an interview with T

Aug 23, 2016

Seoul Int'l Dance Festival to focus on France

A scene from “Ballenas, Historias de Gigantes” / Courtesy of by Pedro ArnayBy Yun Suh-youngThe Seoul International Dance Festival will hold its 19th edition from Sept. 24 to Oct. 15.The festival, part of UNESCO’s International Dance Council (CID), will be held at the CJ Towol Theater of Seoul Arts Center, the Grand Theater and Small Theater of Sogang University's Mary Hall and the outdoor stage of D-Cube Park in D-Cube City, Sindorim, southwestern Seoul.This year, the festival specially focuses on France and Spain, as this year marks the Year of Korea-France bilateral exchanges in commemoration of the 130th anniversary of diplomatic ties. As for the Spain section, it had long been a request of the country to participate in the festival.For the special programs offered as part of the France Focus, a variety of contemporary French dances will give audiences a glimpse of the trends in the contemporary dance scene. They can enjoy “Nouvelle Danse,” which shifted the center of contemporary dance from the U.S. to France, and other French contemporary works.The

Aug 22, 2016

Seoul Int'l Dance Festival to focus on France

Jikji to be made into giant lantern wall

A giant lantern wall, bearing all the letters of Jikji, the UNESCO-listed ancient Korean Buddhist mantra and the world’s oldest existing book printed with movable metal type, is shown on Sunday, prior to the Jikji Korea festival set to start Sept. 1 in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province.  / YonhapBy Park Jin-haiJikji, which is considered the world's oldest existing book printed with movable metal type, will be displayed as a giant lantern wall of letters during the Jikji Korea festival that will run from Sept. 1 to 8.The UNESCO-listed ancient Korean Buddhist mantra, whose full title is “Baegun Hwasang Chorok Buljo Jikji Simche Yojeol” (Master Baegun’s Excerpts from the Buddhas’ and Patriarchs’ Direct Pointing to the Essence of Mind), was printed in Heungdeok Temple in Cheongju, 137 kilometers southeast of Seoul, during the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392). It is currently kept in the National Library of France in Paris.The Cheongju city government, which has organized the biennial event to present the excellence of Jikji to the world

Aug 21, 2016

Jikji to be made into giant lantern wall

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[Classical Concerts]‘SAC 11am Concert’Seoul Arts Center*Until Dec. 8On every second Thursday of each month, an “11am Concert” will be performed at the Seoul Arts Center. Chong Park will host the shows with commentary, and coffee will be provided for free. With distinct soloists for each concert, the Korean Symphony Orchestra will perform at all of the concerts.Tickets cost 20,000 to 25,000 won. For more information, visit sac.or.kr or call (02) 580-1300. Sumi Jo: La Prima DonnaSeoul Arts CenterAug. 28World-renowned soprano Sumi Jo will have a concert celebrating the 30th anniversary of her international debut at the Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall on August 28.Jo’s first appearance on the international scene took place in 1986 as the prima donna in the opera “Rigoletto” at the Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi. Ever since, she has actively extended her role in various opera productions. “La Prima Donna” concert will feature songs from well-known operas, including “Caro Nome” from “Rigletto,” Liszt’s &l

Aug 18, 2016

Arts & Theater

Arts & Theater

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Leading soprano Sumi Jo to build arts school in Changwon

Artists interpret human body into art

Gwangju Biennale art festival to open next week

AROUND TOWN 2

AROUND TOWN 1

Artist discovers interstices of city

Seoul Int'l Dance Festival to focus on France

Jikji to be made into giant lantern wall

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