Songwriter tied to pro-democracy movement posthumously awarded

Kim Min-ki, a singer-songwriter best known for the once-banned 1971 hit “Morning Dew,” was posthumously given the Woodang Award for promoting national unity and the arts. “His music laid the groundwork that brought the country together. Kim was a humble creator, musician and director, and while leading a theater company, he helped foster singers and actors,” said Lee Jong-chan, president of the Woodang Education and Culture Foundation, at a ceremony Wednesday in Seoul. Th

Nov. 13, 2024

Three-time Olympic gold medalist Oh named for CICI award

South Korean Olympic fencing gold medalist Oh Sang-uk will receive the annual Korea Image Stepping Stone Award presented by the Corea Image Communication Institute in January next year. “Oh elevated South Korea’s global profile by winning two gold medals in the men’s individual and team sabre at the 2024 Paris Olympics,” CICI, a nonprofit promoting Korea’s image abroad, said in a statement Sunday. The Korea Image Stepping Stone Bridge Award went to Korean American c

Nov. 11, 2024

US scholar calls Japan stance on Dokdo ‘inexcusably hypocritical’

Japan’s position on Dokdo, Korea’s easternmost islets in the East Sea that Japan claims as its own, is “inexcusably hypocritical,” according to a US academic. “Japan doesn’t want that territorial dispute (Dokdo) to go to the International Court of Justice because then China would have moral leverage,” said Walter Hatch, an emeritus professor of government at Colby College in Maine, referring to the Japan-controlled islands in the East China Sea disputed

Nov. 10, 2024

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights across Korea

Pink muhly at Hueree The Pink Muhly festival is running at Hueree Park on Jeju Island through Nov. 17. Relish in the shining pink muhly grass -- a tall, flowering variety known for its mauve-hued inflorescences. Admission costs 13,000 won for adults with discounts available for those younger and those participating in group tours. For more information, go to hueree.com. Autumn colors at Hwadam The Autumn Colors Festival is taking place at Hwadam, a botanical garden bursting with fall f

Nov. 8, 2024

Museums discuss empowering elders

The state-run National Folk Museum Korea convened an international symposium to discuss ways to help older adults engage with society as concerns over an aging population rise. The Role of Museums in An Aging Society one-day conference in Seoul on Tuesday was attended by officials from National Museums Liverpool, the National Museum of Finland and the National Museum of Singapore, as well as local academics and researchers. “Korea is anticipated to transition into an ultra-aged society by

Nov. 6, 2024

‘Jang-making’ likely to get UNESCO recognition

The traditional Korean ways of making fermented pastes and sauces, or “jang,” are all but certain to make UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage, the Korea Heritage Service said Tuesday, citing a decision the same day by the UN culture and heritage body to recommend the practice for inscription. The final decision by the 12-member Evaluation Body of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage will be reviewed by the 24-country

Nov. 5, 2024

Exhibition invites children to rethink stars, light pollution

An exhibition for children has opened that invites them to take action on reducing light pollution and appreciate the stars. “Starry Starry Night!,” running through August 2026 at the National Folk Museum of Korea, explores night and darkness. Children up to elementary school age are led to study the diminishing presence of stars, which are being drowned out by artificial light, said curator Yoo Min-ji, who led the preopening tour Monday. “Of all the topics that could help rais

Nov. 4, 2024

Medongaule: Garden of all gardens

YANGPYEONG, Gyeonggi Province -- Gardens are a place of serenity. The Gardens of Medongaule -- formally “Les Jardins de Medongaule,” a garden complex scheduled for full opening next year -- are no exception. Even more, the sheer size of the gardens will leave you awestruck. The compound of Medongaule, meaning a valley (gaule) of bindweed (medon), spans some 200,000 square meters. That’s roughly the size of Ttukseom Hangang Park in Seoul. Medongaule is divided into two main gard

Nov. 2, 2024

Korean Gallery reopens at Art Institute of Chicago

The Korean Gallery at the Art Institute of Chicago is reopening Friday, US time, three times larger and showing more than its previous offering of ceramics. “The gallery will feature several themes including Buddhist Art, Celadon and Tea Culture, Symbolism in Motifs, Buncheong ware, Confucianism and White Porcelain and Treasures of Scholars,” an official from the art museum told The Korea Herald. “The new Korean Gallery will provide an opportunity for visitors to see 60 objects

Nov. 1, 2024

[Well-curated] Explore history of coffee in Korea, grab a book and savor Disney magic

Coffee, just drink? Coffee is a drink South Koreans cannot live without; it’s what they grab in the morning to wake up, in the afternoon for a quick pick-me-up and later to stay alert and work overtime. “What A Brew-tiful Day!” is a special exhibition at the National Folk Museum of Korea that sheds light on how coffee has become an intrinsic part of Korean life. “Koreans on average consume 405 cups of coffee in a year, more than twice the global average. Koreans’ se

Nov. 1, 2024