Like the woman of the same name who was known to have been one of the four beauties of ancient China, the “Yang Guifei,” or “poppy flower,” was so mesmerizingly beautiful that he stopped short and stared for a long time. Artist Kwon In-su, who had never really been into flowers before, was totally captivated by the flower and ended up opening a solo exhibition entirely dedicated to it. “It was a t

Popular Longquan ware found in sunken ship off coast of Sinan shows beauty and culture of 14th century AsiaThe National Museum of Korea is holding a special exhibition featuring about 90 pieces of 14th century Chinese celadon ware found in a shipwreck.The featured pieces are known to be from the Longquan region of China’s southern Zhejiang province, where the most superior kind of Chinese celadon

Easy-to-follow story, timely changes and wit are keys to success for small-stage performancesNo matter how much blockbuster musicals boast of their leading stars, or how low and lewd some small theater shows become in a quest for custom, there remain several decent small-stage musicals that are long-running successes. South Korean original musicals such as: “Finding Kim Jong-wook;” “Sarangun Birul

German museums pull out 116 artifacts from their Korean art collections for traveling exhibitiA two-year touring exhibition of Korean art and cultural artifacts in Germany will kick off Friday at the country’s Museum of East Asian Art in Cologne. The exhibition “Korea Rediscovered ― Treasures from German Collections” is co-organized by the Linden Museum in Stuttgart, Germany, and the Korea Foundat

Exhibitions“Philosopher’s Tree”: Michael Kenna’s black and white tree photographs entice visitors to go find their own tall trees to lie beneath. Kenna is referred to as a “landscape photographer,” especially known for his serene photos of trees delicately highlighted with natural light. The Brit received numerous awards including the Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters from the Culture Min

Korean poetry paintings will be displayed in a major U.S. art museum for the first time next week. The exhibition “The Lure of Painted Poetry: Japanese and Korean Art,” which kicks off March 27 at the Cleveland Museum of Art in Ohio, will offer a rare and in-depth comparison of poetry paintings by Korean and Japanese artists from the 14th to the 21st centuries. Browsing through the 80 poetry paint

Chongdong Theater’s Korean traditional musical performance “Miso” ― whose audience is 30 to 40 percent Japanese ― is in a fix. Japanese tourists have been canceling their tickets since the horrendous earthquake and tsunami that hit their country. “Most Japanese groups that were supposed to come on the day the earthquake struck canceled. About 13 groups have canceled so far. Some who are already ca

More than 140,000 Korean cultural artifacts are currently in overseas countries, the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage announced on Tuesday.Last January the research institution drew up a list of Korea’s missing cultural assets that have been located in foreign countries. At the time, the list had concluded that there are a total of 116,896 Korean items located overseas. The newly r

French composer Charles Goudnod’s opera “Faust,” which premiered in the mid-19th century in Paris, is one of the most frequently performed operas in the world. The Metropolitan Opera in New York City alone has staged it more than 750 times since 1883.The Korea National Opera is to stage “Faust” from March 16-20 at the Seoul Arts Center’s Opera Theater. It is the second of the opera company’s four-

Leeum presents 80 artworks looking back on Korea’s history from 1876 to presentKorea’s restless modern history will unfold at Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, in the form of paintings, photographs, installations and media works. The exhibition “Korean Rhapsody: A Montage of History and Memory,” which opens on Thursday, displays 80 historical documents and artworks that r

Commemorative performance ‘Hakchon Repertoire’ turns fans nostalgicVeteran actor Kim Yun-seok, who mesmerized cinephiles with his impressive role as a fraudulent gambler in the movie “Tazza,” was at the entrance of Hakchon Blue Theater in Daehangno, central Seoul, on Friday evening, checking names and handing out tickets. A PR official standing next to him handed a ticket and wanted to confirm if

LONDON (AP) ― Frothy, film-inspired funfest “Legally Blonde: The Musical” won three big prizes at London’s Laurence Olivier theater awards, while Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Love Never Dies’’ went home empty-handed despite seven nominations.“Legally Blonde” was named best new musical at Britain’s equivalent of Broadway’s Tonys on Sunday. Star Sheridan Smith was crowned best actress in a musical, and Ji