Lifestyle - The Korea Times

Exhibit Shows Cultural Diversity of Southeast Asia

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter Spring conjures up images of blossoming trees and flowers, clear blue skies and sunshine. At the up-coming photo exhibition called ``Asia's Spring,'' the word `spring' does not have anything to do with nature. Instead, spring is meant to convey the spirit of hope associated with the season. ``Asia's Spring'' will open Sunday at the M Gallery, located in Daein Market, Gwangju, South Jeolla Province. The exhibition, organized by UNESCO's Asia-Pacific Center of Education for International Understanding (APCEIU), runs through May 30. ``The photo exhibition's title `Asia's Spring' has two significant meanings. In Korean, `spring' is called `bom,' which can be interpreted as a `seeing' or `to see.' Drawing from these meanings, this exhibition contains two main aims: one is to see various conflict sites in the Southeast Asia through the lens of a camera and the other is that like the word 'spring,' interpreting as a season of hope, by sharing their diverse cultural values through pictures, hoping that they could be healed," organizers said.

May 15, 2009

Clubs, Traditional Events & Art Exhibitions

Clubs The Circle Cheongdam-dong Located in the upscale Cheongdam-dong neighborhood, it's notorious for turning you down unless you're dressed chic and sleek. Faithful to its name, it has a round revolving floor ― looking for your ``lost'' table gives clubbers the perfect excuse to sit down with a sexy stranger. Located on Dosan-daero near Hak-dong intersection. Call (02) 546-5933 or visit www.thecircle.co.kr. Club Answer Cheongdam-dong This might be the answer to your nightlife. It offers an intimate partying environment with groovy electronic music by star DJs. You can reserve tables and those on the second floor provide an open view of the dance floor. Or mingling with the hot bartenders at the open bar might be a fine alternative. Located in Cheongdam-dong across the street from Prima Hotel, near the entrance toi Yeongdong-daegyo. Call (02) 548-7115 or visit www.clubanswer.co.kr. Club Evans Hongdae or Hongik University Area This club, located near Hongik University, is great for intimate live performances. The line-up of performers is generally top-notch and

May 14, 2009

Classical Concerts, Big Tickets, Museums, Dance, Pop and Jazz

Classical Concerts Jerry Jae-il Chae's Clarinet Recital Hoam Art Hall June 17 Clarinetist Jerry Jae-il Chae, winner of the 2008 Dos Hermanas International Clarinet Competition, will hold a recital. The program includes Henri Rabaud's ``Solo de Concours,'' Schumann's ``Fantasiestucke for Clarinet and Piano, Op.73'' and Brahms' ``Trio for Clarinet, Cello and Piano in A minor, Op. 114.'' All tickets are 20,000 won. For more information, visit ticket.interpark.com or call 1544-1555. Located near exit 9 of City Hall station on subway line 1 and 2. Kim Jun-hee's Piano Recital Hoam Art Hall June 19 Pianist Kim Jun-hee, a prize winner of 2007 Concours Long-Thibaud, will hold a recital. He will offer various works including Bartok's ``Two Rumanian Dances for Piano, Op.8/a'' and Chopin's ``Barcarolle in F flat Major, Op.60.'' All tickets are 20,000 won. For more information, visit ticket.interpark.com or call 1544-1555. Located near exit 9 of City Hall Station on subway line 1 and 2. Pipe Organ Meets Handel Sejong Center for the Performing Arts June 27 O

May 14, 2009

Joseon Royal Tombs Nominated for World Heritage List

By Lee Hyo-won Staff Reporter The Royal Tombs of the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910) was nominated to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea (CHA) announced Wednesday. The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), which along with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (ICUN) presides over a tentative list of cultural and natural properties. The tombs scattered around Seoul and Gyeonggi and Gangwon Provinces await final approval at the 33rd session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, which will take place June 22-30 in Seville, Spain. ``No site recommended by the ICOMOS has ever been turned down before,’’ Kim Hong-dong of the CHA International Affairs Division was quoted as saying in the Munwha Ilbo. If the Joseon royal tombs are approved, it will become South Korea’s ninth UNESCO-designated treasure. The tombs comprise the mausoleums of 27 generations of Joseon kings, and queens, including those who were posthumously recognized, spanning over five centuries. Such an intact preservation of the royal tomb

May 13, 2009

Joseon Court Banquet Goes on Stage

By Chung Ah-young Staff Reporter ``Hoeryeyeon,'' a banquet for court officials held in 1433 during the 15th year of King Sejong's rule, will be re-enacted at the National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts (NCKTPA) from May 21 to 24. Titled ``Sound of Heaven, Music of King Sejong,'' the performance is the 2009 national brand of the NCKTPA after being shown as a pilot program last year. ``Hoeryeyeon'' is an art form of the banquet originally held in the last and first month of the year and served as an opening/ending to the year. It was designed to provide a chance to enhance the relationship between the sovereign and his subjects through heart-to-heart discussions. In the show, retainers report to King Sejong (1397-1450), presenting newly created dances and music, and they then review and discuss the performances. ``The banquet was held twice a year but the reason why we picked the 1433 banquet as our national brand is that this performance was more perfect than any other banquets. Also, the performance merged all kinds of cultures at that time,'' said Lee Soo

May 12, 2009

Seoul Art Collective: Outlet for Foreign Artists

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter Korea has a thriving art community, but if you're a foreign artist living here, it can be hard. The language and cultural barrier, plus the difficulty of finding galleries to show your work, are just some of the problems that faced artists like Travis Lee Street and Annabel Fenn. Fenn, an artist and English teacher working in Suwon, said they were looking for a group of international artists to talk and work with. On the Internet, they found the Seoul Art Collective, founded by American artist Ron Saunders with the aim of providing an open forum for artists living in Korea Since Saunders went back to the United States, Fenn and Street decided to take the helm of the Seoul Art Collective last January. ``We're doing some things a little differently, like running more events regularly and involving more Korean and international artists together. We just really wanted to meet like-minded people and just help people get noticed,'' Fenn said. The Korea Times met with Fenn, Street and artists Jeffrey Morabito and Ryan McLay, who shared

May 11, 2009

Chorale Enlivens Beethoven in Fidelio

By Lee Hyo-won Staff Reporter It's not often that quantity is on par with quality. In a rare performance in Seoul this weekend of ``Fidelio,'' MuAk Opera offered a novel experience complete with an impressive 100-plus-member chorus that showed what Beethoven is all about. The German master's unique opera, despite its high musical merits, has been infrequently staged. The performances Thursday to Sunday at Seoul Arts Center marked its reappearance here after 17 years, and two were rendered for the first time in German. The opera received its South Korean premiere in 1970 but the underlying theme of freedom and justice prevailing over tyrannical power made it taboo under the militant regime of the '70s and '80s. Also, its preachy idealism of conjugal marriage and political austerity made it a less popular repertoire compared to Verdi's melodramas or Mozart's comedies. Despite featuring a rather dark story set on a minimal stage set, MuAk Opera offered a production teeming with some brilliant musicality ― talented singers and, moreover, striking choristers, compensated more th

May 10, 2009

Renoir Exhibit Opens May 28

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter Impressionist art has proven to be a hit among the Korean audience, as the Claude Monet and Vincent Van Gogh retrospectives drew record crowds to the Seoul Museum of Art in the last two years. A new exhibition featuring works by Impressionist master Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) will open May 28 in Seoul, hoping to satisfy the audience's appetite for masterpieces by Impressionism's greatest painters. ``Renoir: Promise of Happiness'' will feature 118 artworks, including 70 oil paintings, through Sept. 13 at the Seoul Museum of Art, downtown Seoul. Seo Soun-jou, commissioner of the Renoir exhibition, said this is the biggest retrospective of the French painter's works since a show held at the Grand-Palais, Paris in 1985. Renoir, a leading figure in the Impressionist movement, is famous for celebrating beauty in his art. The Seoul exhibition will boast of masterpieces, such as, ``A Dance in the Country'' (1883), ``The Swing'' (1876), ``Study: Torso, effect of sunlight'' (1875-1876), ``Young Girls at the Piano'' (1892) and `

May 8, 2009

Clubs, Traditional Events & Art Exhibitions

Clubs The Circle Cheongdam-dong Located in the upscale Cheongdam-dong neighborhood, it’s notorious for turning you down unless you’re dressed chic and sleek. Faithful to its name, it has a round revolving floor ― looking for your ``lost’’ table gives clubbers the perfect excuse to sit down with a sexy stranger. Located on Dosan-daero near Hak-dong intersection. Call (02) 546-5933 or visit www.thecircle.co.kr. Club Answer Cheongdam-dong This might be the answer to your nightlife. It offers an intimate partying environment with groovy electronic music by star DJs. You can reserve tables and those on the second floor provide an open view of the dance floor. Or mingling with the hot bartenders at the open bar might be a fine alternative. Located in Cheongdam-dong across the street from Prima Hotel, near the entrance toi Yeongdong-daegyo. Call (02) 548-7115 or visit www.clubanswer.co.kr. Underlounge Seoul Hongdae or Hongik University Area This is the local club of a hip Japanese chain that’s also found in Shanghai. Located in the famous clubbing area, Hongdae, it’s fl

May 7, 2009

Concerts, Museums & Theater

Classical Concerts Denis Sungho Janssens' Guitar Recital Mapo Arts Center May 20 Classical guitarist Denis SunghoJanssens, hailed by Le Soir as possessing"exceptional virtuosity," will hold arecital titled "Remembrance" to celebratethe first anniversary of MapoArts Center's reconstruction. Ticketscost from 10,000 won to 30,000 won.For more information, visitwww.mapoartcenter.or.kr or call (02)3274-8600. Located near exit 2 of DaeheungStation on subway line 6. Opera Concertante 'Mose' Seoul Arts Center May 22 To celebrate its 15th anniversary, theSeoul Opera Ensemble will perform G.Rossini's opera "Mose" in concertanteform with the Seoul National SymphonyOrchestra and the Grande Opera Choir.Tickets range from 20,000 won to70,000 won. For more information, visitticket.interpark.com or call (02) 741-7389. Located near exits 4 and 5 of NambuBus Terminal on subway line 3. Lendvay & Friends' Concert Seoul Arts Center June 1 Hungarian gypsy violinist JozsefLendvay and his quintet will return toKorea. The program includes LeoWeiner's "Divertimento" and VittorioMonti's

May 7, 2009

Arts & Theater

Arts & Theater

Exhibit Shows Cultural Diversity of Southeast Asia

Clubs, Traditional Events & Art Exhibitions

Classical Concerts, Big Tickets, Museums, Dance, Pop and Jazz

Joseon Royal Tombs Nominated for World Heritage List

Joseon Court Banquet Goes on Stage

Seoul Art Collective: Outlet for Foreign Artists

Chorale Enlivens Beethoven in Fidelio

Renoir Exhibit Opens May 28

Clubs, Traditional Events & Art Exhibitions

Concerts, Museums & Theater

Most Read in Lifestyle