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Media artist Choi Chan-sook named winner of Korea Artist Prize 2021

Artist Choi Chan-sook / Courtesy of MMCABy Park Han-solMedia artist Choi Chan-sook has been named the winner of the Korea Artist Prize 2021, the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) announced, Monday.As an artist based in Berlin and Seoul, Choi has long utilized her personal history of migration as a lens to view the concepts of land, community and settlement and how they constitute one's memories and history.In 2019, while staying in the small village of Yangji-ri in Gangwon Province ― originally established for “propagandistic purposes” in the border region of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) ― she focused on the story of village women who cannot claim ownership of its land, marked by the complex history of seizure and reclamation from the 1950-53 Korean War and the present-day problem of real estate speculation.It was during her interaction with such individuals who had been marginalized and pushed off of their land that she became gripped by the question of when and what prompted humans to transform the vast strip of natural terrain into commodifie

Mar 14, 2022By Park Han-sol

Media artist Choi Chan-sook named winner of Korea Artist Prize 2021

From 'Chunhyang' to 'Prince Hodong,' ballet and opera incorporate traditional Korean sounds

A scene from the “The Love of Chunhyang” / Courtesy of the Universal Ballet By Dong Sun-hwaOne of the most notable trends in the performing arts field these days is that the performances originating in the West frequently incorporate traditional Korean sounds, blending different cultures to produce fascinating hybrids that can appeal to a wider audience. At the forefront of this trend is the Universal Ballet, which is scheduled to stage “The Love of Chunhyang” from March 18 to 20 at the Haeoreum Grand Theater of the National Theater of Korea (NTOK) located in central Seoul. “The Love of Chunhyang” is based on the story of “Chunhyangga,” from the traditional Korean genre of musical storytelling called pansori. It tells the love story of Seong Chun-hyang, the daughter of a “gisaeng” named Wolmae, and Yi Mong-ryong, the son of a government official. Gisaeng refers to a female entertainer of male customers in the 1392-1910 Joseon Dynasty. Although a greedy magistrate

Mar 13, 2022By Dong Sun-hwa

From 'Chunhyang' to 'Prince Hodong,' ballet and opera incorporate traditional Korean sounds

More webtoon creators recognized by fine art galleries

Webtoon artist Kian84's “Time” (2022) / Courtesy of START.art KoreaBy Park Han-solSince the inception of webtoons (a Korean term for webcomics) in the early 2000s, Korean cartoonists have been producing content optimal for desktop computers as well as handheld device screens. However, in recent years, a number of creators have begun occupying art galleries with their work.Cartoonist Kim Hee-min, who goes by his pen name Kian84, is best known for his hit webtoons series “Fashion King” and his TV appearance on MBC's reality show “I Live Alone.”After wrapping up his latest comics series “Bokhak Wang (King of the Returnees)” last year, Kian84 has launched a career as an artist, starting with his first upcoming solo exhibition that is scheduled to start on March 25 at the Superior Gallery in Seoul's Gangnam District.Titled “Full Possession,” the show will unveil 18 of his newest paintings that reinterpret the key characters and iconography from his webtoons in a style of colorful, dynamic pop art.“Right at this moment, I am

Mar 10, 2022By Park Han-sol

More webtoon creators recognized by fine art galleries

Auction houses, galleries dip their toes into each other's territory

Installation view of K Auction's exhibition, “The Collection,” held at The Hyundai Seoul in Yeongdeungpo District, Seoul / Courtesy of K AuctionBy Park Han-solFollowing the hushed year of 2020 engulfed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Korea's art market saw a new boom last year. The local market tripled in size in 2021 compared to the previous year, surpassing 915 billion won ($751.5 million), according to the Korea Arts Management Service (KAMS). Witnessing this hard-to-miss exponential growth, key players such as auction houses and galleries have begun to experiment with expanding their roles, going as far as dipping their toes into each other's territory.K Auction, one of Korea's leading auction houses, is hosting a large-scale art exhibition jointly with Hyundai Department Store this week.Titled “The Collection,” the show has brought in over 250 pieces produced by nearly 130 artists, from emerging creators to renowned masters both here and abroad like Kim Whanki, Chung Sang-hwa, Donald Judd and Stanley Whitney.The exhibition will run until Sunday at The Hyundai S

Mar 9, 2022By Park Han-sol

Auction houses, galleries dip their toes into each other's territory

Gucci's immersive garden of enchanting scenes arrives in Korea

Installation view of the recreated set of Gucci's SS 2016 Rebellious Romantics campaign / Courtesy of Gucci By Park Han-solMuffled club music echoes throughout a bathroom decked out in bright pink tiles and red lacquered stalls. Dressed just as flamboyantly as the room itself, young couples seem to get ready for another wild ride through a night filled with booze, romance and the spirit of defiance.This room offering a forbidden glimpse into a hedonistic scene of nightlife in Berlin is one of a dozen immersive sets brought to the audience at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) in central Seoul this month by the Italian luxury brand Gucci.Titled “Gucci Garden Archetypes,” the multimedia exhibition recreates the brand's visually spectacular advertising campaigns with daring concepts envisioned by Alessandro Michele in his nearly seven years as the fashion house's creative director. Seoul became the sixth stop for this traveling wonderland, following its showcase in Flor

Mar 8, 2022By Park Han-sol

Gucci's immersive garden of enchanting scenes arrives in Korea

AI, video game engines become philosophical tools for Ian Cheng

A still from Ian Cheng's “Emissary in the Squat of Gods” (2015) / Courtesy of the artist, Gladstone Gallery, Pilar Corrias, London, and Standard (Oslo), OsloBy Park Han-solArtificial intelligence (AI) and video game engines meet philosophy in the art of Ian Cheng.While armed with a pop-culture-inspired visual language from the likes of video game “SimCity,” Cheng's live simulations of virtual ecosystems teeming with AI-based characters and wildlife also make a complex theoretical inquiry into the nature of human consciousness.The Leeum Museum of Art exhibition, “Ian Cheng: Worlding” ― Asia's first comprehensive survey of the artist's simulated worlds created over the past seven years ― serves as a fascinating portal into such innovation, which merges cutting-edge technology with cognitive psychology to visualize in real time certain mechanisms fueling the human mind and behavior.Artist Ian Cheng / Courtesy of the Leeum Museum of Art“I've always been a big fan of art that feels and is alive,” the artist said at the recent press conferenc

Mar 7, 2022By Park Han-sol

AI, video game engines become philosophical tools for Ian Cheng

REVIEW 'Notre Dame de Paris' captures quintessence of French musical

A scene from the musical, “Notre Dame de Paris,” featuring dancers swinging from bells / Courtesy of Mast EntertainmentBy Dong Sun-hwaA Wednesday afternoon is obviously not the most ideal time for people to watch a musical, but yesterday, the Blue Square hall in central Seoul was brimming with theatergoers, who were eager to see the original French production of the musical, “Notre Dame de Paris.”Premiered in France in 1998, “Notre Dame de Paris,” which is based on the 1831 novel by Victor Hugo, is one of the most sought-after productions in Korea from overseas that has attracted more than 15 million theatregoers across the globe. Composed by Riccardo Cocciante and written by Luc Plamondon, “Notre Dame de Paris” wrapped up early in January 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it recently returned to Korea for encore performances, beginning its run on Feb. 25. Set in 1482 Paris, the musical revolves around Quasimodo, a hunchback bell-ringer of Notre Dame Cathedral, and his unreciprocated love for a beautiful gypsy girl named Esmeralda,

Mar 3, 2022By Dong Sun-hwa

[REVIEW] 'Notre Dame de Paris' captures quintessence of French musical

20th-century Korean photography: Search to immortalize 'spiritual truth' of era

Park Ju Seok, a professor of the Research Institute for the Visual Language of Korea at Myongji University, and an archivist of 20th-century Korean photography, poses at the Art Space Eonju Round in Seoul's Gangnam District, Feb. 22. In this touring exhibition, which will continue in Gwangju and Daegu in the coming months, 50 historic vintage and original photographic prints produced from the 1920s to the 1980s from his “Jipyung Collection” have been unveiled to the public for the first time. Nearly 30 pieces from the collection will also travel to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in September. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukCollection shows modern-era Korean photographers' pursuit of truthBy Park Han-solWhether it is employed in the field of science, art or media, the term “photography” ― essentially meaning “drawing with light” ― encapsulates a strictly technical process. However, the very first Korean encounter with photographic images ― recorded in Yi Hang-eok's 1863 journal entry of “Yeonhaeng Ilgi,” when a team of envoys fro

Mar 3, 2022By Park Han-sol

20th-century Korean photography: Search to immortalize 'spiritual truth' of era

Korea's major art biennales to tie transnational themes to host cities' dynamic histories

Lee Sook-kyung, the artistic director for the 14th edition of the Gwangju Biennale, slated for April 2023 / Courtesy of the Gwangju Biennale FoundationBy Park Han-solWhat is known as the “Gwangju Spirit” is a foundational mindset of Korea's southwestern city historically, which witnessed one of the most tragic events of the modern era, the 1980 Gwangju Uprising. The Gwangju Biennale, Asia's oldest biennial of contemporary art, has continuously revisited this spirit in both its mission and exhibition themes since its founding in 1995.To Lee Sook-kyung, the newly appointed artistic director for the 14th edition of the Biennale, the spirit of Gwangju is a rich concept that still leaves plenty of room for constructive redefinition and reinterpretation.“The city's spirit didn't emerge out of nowhere along with the May 18 pro-democracy movement. Rather, it has been a [deep-rooted] mindset that simply burst out in the form of resistance in the face of extreme adversity in 1980," Lee said at Monday's press conference in central Seoul."In fact, the concept can be traced back

Mar 1, 2022By Park Han-sol

Korea's major art biennales to tie transnational themes to host cities' dynamic histories

REVIEW Actor Seo Kyung-soo steals scene in musical 'Something Rotten!'

A scene from the musical, “Something Rotten!” / Courtesy of M TheaterBy Dong Sun-hwaSet in 1595 London, musical comedy “Something Rotten!” revolves around the Bottom Brothers, Nick and Nigel, playwrights who are overshadowed by their contemporary, William Shakespeare. Although the two brothers are the main protagonists of the wildly popular theatrical show, in its Korean production, Shakespeare ― played by actor Seo Kyung-soo ― literally steals the scene with his performance, incorporating a dry sense of humor. Penned by John O'Farrell and Karey Kirkpatrick, “Something Rotten!” is the 10-time Tony Award-nominated musical that premiered on Broadway in 2015. Its Korean adaptation, which hit the stage for the first time in 2020, has been running at the Universal Arts Center from Dec. 21, 2021. Although the show was temporarily put on a hold after Seo and actor Lee Choong-joo ― who alternates the role of Nick Bottom ― tested positive for COVID-19, it began its run again on Feb. 17, adding two new cast members. Kim Dong-wan, a member of K-pop act Shinhw

Feb 25, 2022By Dong Sun-hwa

Arts & Theater