College classes have gone virtual with a second wave of COVID-19 from last month, and with the prolonged pandemic campus life is changing fast -- including the campus festivals that mark the start of fall semester. On Tuesday, Ewha Womans University in Seoul kicked off a three-day online festival, where students can engage in online games and programs prepared by the student council and watch livestreamed bands. Gone are the usual student pop-up shops and live performances. “From classe

MU:CON 2020 director Yoon Sang praises BTS becoming first Asian hip-hop artists to top Billboard Hot 100

People have come up with innovative alternatives to keep themselves entertained as the novel coronavirus persists worldwide. New hobbies tailored for the pandemic era are flourishing on social media, aiming to combat the fatigue induced by extended social distancing and working from home. The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a rise in creative DIY activities, including bead bracelets. Taeyeon of Girls’ Generation posted pictures of her self-made bead bracelets, which garnered the attention o

Conference to discuss unlearning past practices, teaching art in local communities, role of art education in time of confusion

The National Museum of Korea will livestream an online show of its largest-ever exhibition of national treasures at 7 p.m. Tuesday on Naver TV. “We hope the Naver TV livestream show ‘The New National Treasures of Korea 2017-2019’ can be of great comfort to the people who are suffering due to the coronavirus situation,” an NMK official said in a statement. “The New National Treasures of Korea” exhibition, jointly organized by the Cultural Heritage Administ

Farmers are busy harvesting chestnuts for the upcoming Chuseok holiday in Banpo, a district in Gongju of South Chungcheong Province.  The Gongju district is the largest chestnut-producing region in South Korea. The chestnuts are ripe and ready for picking -- despite the COVID-19 pandemic and a series of typhoons hitting the nation. Farmers are preparing to offer a chestnut picking event to last until October. (Photos: Yonhap) By Song Donna (donnadsong@heraldcorp.com)

The Cultural Heritage Administration on Thursday announced it is to apply for the listing of the Gaya Tumuli as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Gaya Tumuli is a serial property consisting of seven different tumuli sites -- Gimhae Daeseong-dong Tumuli, Haman Marisan Tumuli, Hapcheon Okjeon Tumuli, Goryeong Jisan-dong Tumuli, Goseong Songhak-dong Tumuli, Changnyeong Gyo-dong and Songhyeon-dong Tumuli and Namwon Yugok-ri and Durak-ri Tumuli -- located along the Nakdong River in the southern pa

The four-day international music fair “2020 MU:CON” will take place online Sept. 23 - Sept. 26, according to the Korea Creative Content Agency on Wednesday. Now in its 9th year, MU:CON gathers members of the music industry and artists for discussions about the industry and to showcase performances from both Korean and international groups. “The music industry has shown the power of K-pop through a fast transition to contactless concerts, despite the tremendous damage due to

The Preparatory Office for International Center for the Interpretation and Presentation of World Heritage Sites is holding an online lecture series titled “Understanding World Heritage Interpretation and Presentation” from Thursday to Nov. 26. The center’s establishment was approved as a UNESCO Category 2 Center at the 40th UNESCO General Conference held last November. It was created to focus on research, education and dissemination of information related to world heritage in

Two groups based in Nepal and the UK that have been campaigning against illiteracy in Nepal and Myanmar have won the 2020 UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize. The Nepal-based organization, Ageing Nepal, was created in 2016 and has helped over 180 seniors learn Nepali in a country where the majority of adults are illiterate. The group was recognized for its innovative and instructive classes, which involved activities such as touring local markets so the students could practice reading street sig

Bill amending the law on video industry promotion expected to boost content producers’ negotiating position vis-a-vis global streaming platforms

K-pop fans from all over the world fawning over young K-pop idols is one thing. Fans flocking to online registration for a chance to see a 73-year-old trot singer’s concert is another. Upon the announcement of “Emperor of Trot” Na Hoon-a’s first online-streamed concert, fans around the globe filled out application forms explaining why they had to be chosen as part of the audience for the special show. Local broadcaster KBS 2TV’s “2020 Chuseok Grand Plan Rep

The Cultural Heritage Administration, in conjunction with the Silla Cultural Heritage Research Institute, has unveiled several newly discovered pieces of jewelry to the public for the first time. The relics -- thought to be worn in the early sixth century of the Silla Kingdom -- came from an archaeological excavation of sites of tomb No. 120-2 in Hwangnam-dong, Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, the same place site where a pair of gilt-bronze shoes, among other relics, were discovered in Ma

The Korean Culture and Information Service announced on Thursday that it had published an English-language guidebook for foreigners staying in South Korea titled “While in Korea.” “This book contains essential information for those living in Korea so that it may help longterm foreign residents in Korea settle,” a KCIS official said in a statement. The 70-page book contains practical information such as how to get mobile phone service and open bank accounts in Korea. I

The Korean Cultural Center in Paris will reopen next week with a contemporary art exhibition titled “Real DMZ Project: Negotiating Borders,” after it shut down in March due to the spread of COVID-19. The exhibition will run from Sept. 11 to Nov. 6. “The COVID-19 situation is still bad, but we will reopen our center to invigorate the daily lives of art lovers in France,” a Korean Cultural Center Paris official said in a statement. The special exhibition aims to mark