Lifestyle - The Korea Times

Exhibits discover history of old Seoul

By Chung Ah-young Skyscrapers create an impressive skyline for modern-day Seoul. It’s hard to imagine the city without the present landscape. What did Seoul look like back in the 1930s or in the 50s-60s when the nation was savaged by the Japanese colonial government (1910-45) and the Korean War (1950-53)? Two exhibitions are being held to highlight the past and the old version of Seoul with special historic photographs and various installations. Held at the Seoul Museum of History, “Seoul, To Rise Again” will continue through April 24 while the Cheong Gye Cheon Museum is presenting “Old Seoul Through Foreign Eyes” through June 26. The Seoul Museum of History is exhibiting photos that capture the images of the city from 1957 to 1963 when the nation was under reconstruction after the war. The period was the peak of the Korean baby boom, politically the era of dramatic change led by military regimes and administratively the time to zone the boundaries of Seoul. Although the reconstruction project was completed during this period, there were still remnants of the war with

Apr 5, 2011

Adopted artists share ideas with Korean students

By Kwon Mee-yoo Erika Blikman, 37, and Mai Marie Choon Dijksma, 31, explained their works and the project “At Home in Patterns” at Ewha Media High School in Jungnang District, northern Seoul, on Thursday. Twenty-five students were keen on making collage works with the artists. Blikman and Dijksma are residency artists of Seoul Art Space Geumcheon. They were adopted to the Netherlands after being born in Busan and Seoul, respectively. The two teamed up to apply for the residency artist position in Seoul Art Space, to explore the “feeling of home” with the people from their motherland. “We got the idea to work together in Korea first in 2006 since Korea is our background,” Blikman told The Korea Times. The two have different characteristics. Blikman is more into photography, film and performance, while Dijksma majored in textile and produces installation artworks. “We thought it would be interesting to bring those together and learn from each other,” Dijksma said. Blikman’s 2008 work “Real Bananas,” portraying Asian adopted children growing up in white families in t

Apr 4, 2011

National Museum of Korea most visited in Asia in 2010

By Chung Ah-young The National Museum of Korea topped attendance numbers in Asia and ranked 9th in the world for 2010 with 3.06 million visitors. The result was released in the April edition of The Art Newspaper, a British publication that has surveyed art museum attendance figures for the past 15 years. The number of visitors to the national museum rose by 337,705 from 2.7 million to 3.06 million due mainly to a series of special exhibitions and events, such as “Masterpieces of Goryeo Buddhist Paintings” (Oct. 11 to Nov. 21 in 2010), a reception event for the G20 Seoul Summit in June to August, “Golden Splendors: The Royal Tomb of Silla, The Great Tomb at Hwangnam” (Sept. 7 to Oct. 31) and “The Great Myth and Mystery of Peruvian Civilization: Inca” (Jan. 2 to March 28). The museum is the flagship for Korean history, culture and art with some 150,000 pieces in its permanent collection. It was first established in 1945 and was relocated to Yongsan Family Park in 2005. It is the sixth largest museum in the world. The Gyeongju National Museum ranked 22nd with 1.49 millio

Apr 3, 2011

Spring opens with abstract expressions

By Kwon Mee-yoo Indulge in Korean abstract art at the National Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) this spring. The Deoksu Palace Museum, an annex of MOCA, is holding an exhibition titled “Abstract It” until May 10, shedding new light on the museum’s vast collection. Yoo Jin-sang, a professor at the Kaywon School of Art And Design, planned the exhibition as a guest curator. The event aims to rediscover the collection of MOCA. “There are some 2,500 works in MOCA’s collection including paintings, sculptures, media art works and more. From them I chose about 70, some of which are being displayed for the first time,” Yoo said. The exhibition presents four sections to reflect the extended definition of “abstraction” — Obscurity/Invisibility; Everyday’s Abstraction; Techniques of Abstraction; Plane of Abstraction or Outside. Dozens of pieces ranging from the early-20th century to present, including those by Korean artists Kim Chang-ryeol and Park Seo-bo, are laid out next to Marcel Duchamp and Louise Bourgeoise. “They are not in chronological order,” said Yoo. “I

Apr 1, 2011By Kwon Mee-yoo

Lee U-fan to hold exhibition at Guggenheim

By Chung Ah-young Prominent Korean artist Lee U-fan, 75, will hold a retrospective exhibition titled “Lee U-fan: Making Infinity” at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, from June 24 to Sept. 28. Lee is the second Korean artist to hold an exhibition at one of the world’s most prestigious museums. The first was the late video artist Paik Nam-june in 2000. The museum introduces the artist as a “preeminent sculptor, painter, and writer active in Korea, Japan and Europe over the last forty years,” and continues “the exhibition positions Lee as a historical figure and contemporary master, charting the artist’s creation of a visual, conceptual, and theoretical language that has radically expanded the possibilities for Post-Minimalist art.” The exhibition will feature some 90 works from the 1960s to the present including a new site-specific installation. Installed throughout the museum from the rotunda floor and the six ramps of the Frank Lloyd Wright designed building and into two Annex Level galleries the exhibit is sure to attract much attention. Many of the sculptures, pa

Mar 30, 2011

Kim Dong-wan to perform in Hedwig

By Kwon Mee-yoo Kim Dong-wan of Shinhwa and model-turned-actor Kim Jae-wook will take the stage as a transgender rock singer in “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” from May. Musical actors Jo Jung-seok and Choi Jae-woong return to play the rocker again and will alternate the role with the two Kims. Production company Show Note said the four actors have distinct colors and thus four totally different Hedwigs will be presented this year. “Lee Gi-na, the director of previous productions of ‘Hedwig,’ knows the show well and has been prominent in finding the individuality of the actors,” an employee of Show Note said. Costumes, make-up and even choreography and lighting will be customized for each actor, maximizing their characteristics. Known for his masculine charm, Kim Dong-wan will be transformed into a tender-hearted, vulnerable singer. “When he decided to act in Hedwig, he read the script and score over and over to understand the character,” the Show Note staffer said. “He made his debut as a member of K-pop group Shinhwa in 1998 and has acted in several TV dramas an

Mar 30, 2011By Kwon Mee-yoo

Midsummer to depict youngsters of the time

By Chung Ah-young This year marks the 10th anniversary of the OD Musical Company and to celebrate the occasion the company has chosen to go back to the basics by presenting theatrical stage works rather than extravagant and commercial musicals. Surviving the recycling boom and bust of a shaky industry during the past decade, the OD Musical Company had transformed the local musical industry into an attractive market in the world through its landmark production of “Dreamgirls.” The 2009 production of the popular musical with the state-of-the-art LED panels succeeded in its world premiere in collaboration with the United States. The first of the commemorative series, “Midsummer” is a “play with songs” written by David Greig and composed by Gordon Macintyre, and stars veteran actress Ye Ji-won and musical sensations Seo Bum-seok and Lee Seok-jun in the upcoming Korean version. The play will be directed by Yang Jung-ung who is renowned for imbuing Shakespeare’s work “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” with a Korean sentiment and has received rave reviews from international stages.

Mar 30, 2011

Wives to bring therapeutic story on stage

By Chung Ah-young Today no one is free from modern malaises such as depression, isolation and anxiety. Unlike Western societies, Koreans have regarded psychiatric problems as taboo and people are reluctant to turn to experts when they face mental hardship. The play “Vacation of Wives” will offer an outlet for audience members that might suffer from the same agonies, and an opportunity to sympathize with actors on stage. The drama revolves around a mother, a daughter and a daughter-in-law, who all have psychiatric issues buried deep inside. Veteran actress Sohn Sook will appear as the mother Im Mun-gyeong, who had trouble with her late husband because of his extramarital affair but now lives with yearnings for him and a deep wound in her heart. Lee Sun-joo plays the 40-year-old Oh Ji-young, the daughter who battles depression since an early menopause, while daughter-in-law Yu Nan-hee, played by So Hee-jung, who is obsessed with a “superwoman” complex, wanting to be perfect in her everyday role as a mother and wife. The three women take a trip to the United States to c

Mar 29, 2011

Magician wins Merlin Award

By Chung Ah-young Korean magician Lee Eun-gyeol won this year’s Merlin Award of the International Magicians Society (IMS). The award is the top honor, equivalent to an Oscar in the movie business. It is given to the best magician in the world, who has achieved the highest level in their craft, based on talent, showmanship, originality, skills and entertainment. World-renowned magicians David Copperfield and Harry Blackstone won the awards. Tony Hassini, president of the IMS, will present the award at Suseong Artpia in Daegu where Lee is performing as part of his tour “The Illusion” on March 27. “This award has been given to the world’s top magicians such as David Copperfield and Siegfried & Roy. As a representative magician of Korea, I will fulfill my responsibility and mission given to me in order to make the Korean magician industry shine,” Lee said in a press release. Initiated in 1968, the IMS is the world’s largest magic society with more than 37,000 members worldwide.

Mar 25, 2011

Remembering Lee at Gwanghwamun

By Kwon Mee-yoo “Gwanghwamun Younga,” another big homegrown musical production, raised its curtain Sunday at the Grand Theater of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, Seoul, weaving a love story out of timeless numbers written by the late composer Lee Young-hoon. The musical is an ambitious work interpreting songs by Lee through a love triangle, but relies too much on the composer’s personal story and weakens the show despite impassioned performances. The title comes from a song of the same title and “Younga” means love song in Korean. The composer showed enthusiasm in staging a musical with his songs and wrote the synopsis when he was battling colon cancer. The work has finally come to fruition some three years after the composer passed away. This is the first Korean jukebox musical produced with only a composer's songs. Worldwide hit jukebox musicals feature songs by or connected to a particular musician or group, such as "Mamma Mia!" based on Swedish group ABBA's hits or "All Shook Up" with the songs of Elvis Presley. However, like most hit Korean pop songs,

Mar 25, 2011By Kwon Mee-yoo

Arts & Theater