In this time of strict social distancing, the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea, is offering an Instagram preview of its latest exhibition, “Axis of Horizon.” A 30-minute live preview of the exhibition, guided by curator Yang Ok-kum, will be available Thursday at 4 p.m. on the museum’s Instagram channel (@mmcakorea). The full exhibition, originally scheduled to open in early April at the Seoul venue, is on hold due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The exhibition features

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country earlier this year, it was something the art world never expected. It was particularly challenging for art galleries, which believed artworks were best appreciated in person at the gallery. But the unprecedentedly prolonged viral threat has changed things. Galleries had to come up with creative ways to reach out to people who are practicing social distancing. They held virtual reality exhibitions, online press conferences and private tours. And the g

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) was co-awarded at the Asia Art Pioneers Award 2019 for the exhibition “Awakenings: Art in society in Asia 1960s-1990s” which was held last year at the museum’s Gwacheon venue. The exhibition, which was co-hosted by South Korea, Singapore and Japan, encompasses artworks from 100 representative artists from the late 18th century in 13 Asian countries. The tour of the exhibition started in Japan in October 2018 an

Folk painting coloring book attracts interest as new hobby fit amid virus threat

The Gwangju Biennale Foundation is embarking on a global project titled “MaytoDay” to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising, hosting exhibitions around the world in an effort to promote the spirit of the democratization movement. The project, “MaytoDay,” will take place in five cities in four countries -- Taiwan, South Korea, Germany and Argentina -- from May to November. The project will also be showcased at next year’s Venic

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in South Korea has launched an online museum series for children who are spending most of their time at home amid the COVID-10 outbreak, to help them better understand the modern art. The museum is unveiling a total of five episodes on its YouTube Channel, uploading new episodes on Wednesdays and Thursdays. The episodes will cover four renowned artists: Park Seo-bo, Marcel Duchamp, Ahn Kyu-chul and Choi Jeong-hwa. The videos aim to help kid

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA) is hosting a calligraphy exhibition for the first time in its history, titled “The Modern and Contemporary Korean Writing,” aiming to show the beauty of calligraphy through the masterpieces from 1920s to modern era. The exhibition was unveiled online Monday through livestreaming on MMCA YouTube channel with curator Bae Won-jung guiding through the artworks for 90 minutes. The exhibition was scheduled to open in March, but w

The two main art auction houses in Korea saw better performance than expected in March despite the COVID-19 outbreak clouding the art market. Seoul Auction, the nation’s largest auction house, saw its auction success rate at 60 percent at the first auction of the year, held Tuesday. The total sales amounted to 5 billion won ($4.1 million), according to the company. “We worried about the auction result because the viral infection has frozen the art market, but it turned out to be

When Park Young-sook, the first-generation feminist photographer, visited the Gotjawal Forest on Jeju Island for the first time last year, she had to walk through dead vines and thought of the forest as an abandoned place. Then women who were sacrificed in witch hunts came to mind. “I felt like the place turned into a spiritual place where women who were labeled as ‘witches’ in Europe came crossing the sea and peacefully lived at the desolate, lonely forest,” Park said

A lack of information about legendary Korean dancer Choi Seung-hee (1911-1968) allowed Nam Hwa-yeon to come up with her own interpretations of Choi’s historic achievements for the solo exhibition “Mind Stream.” The interdisciplinary artist created artworks that range from media art to sculptures based on her research about the dancer. Nam represented Korea at the 2019 Venice Biennale 2019, along with Siren Eun Young Jung and Jane Jin Kaisen. Not many materials remain in Sou

The Korean-American artist Anicka Yi was chosen as the sixth artist of the Hyundai Commission to hold an exhibition at the Tate Modern in London this year. 　 Yi is an installation artist whose work explores the links between art and science, addressing questions around migration, class and gender. Born in Seoul in 1971, Yi is now based in in US, according to Hyundai Motor, the co-organizer of Hyundai Commission. “Anicka Yi has developed a reputation for highly innovative work. Her inst

Video art pioneer Paik Nam-june’s retrospective exhibition will open Friday at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam in the Netherlands, the second stop of the exhibition’s international tour. Titled “The Future is Now,” the show will feature more than 200 works by the artist, including those in the museum’s collection. The exhibition will run through Aug. 23. The major retrospective exhibition of Paik is on a two-year international tour, starting at the Tate Modern i

Korean Cultural Centre UK announced Wednesday that it is holding its UK Residency Report Showcase, in an exhibition titled “Rendered Reality” that features multimedia works by Min Joon-hong and Suh Shin-uk, running from Wednesday to April 18. This marks the first UK Residency Report Showcase exhibition, held with artists who have completed KCCUK’s residency program to support emerging artists. The opening reception of the exhibition held Monday at the KCCUK in London featu

With the spread of COVID-19 continuing for more than 50 days, museums and galleries have begun to seek ways to provide cultural experiences for people who are isolating themselves at home and minimizing social activities. The National Museum of Korea, which is temporarily closed due to the spread of the new coronavirus, said Monday that it would stream its special exhibition, “10,000 Years of Design - Man, Matter, Metamorphosis” at 7 p.m. on Friday through Naver TV, at https://tv.

Many art galleries and museums here have shut down or postponed exhibitions due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and more people are in self-imposed isolation as part of social distancing to prevent the spread of the respiratory illness. But, there is still a chance to alleviate negative emotions that result from the prolonged crisis and refresh your mind: browsing works of art from the collection of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea from the comfort of your home. Established