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National Museum of Korea suffers budget woes despite record visits
The National Museum of Korea's budget for acquiring artifacts has been frozen for the past decade despite the institution ranking among the world's most-visited museums, government data showed. According to data obtained by Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Min Hyung-bae and made public Tuesday, the museum's acquisition budget has remained virtually unchanged since 2015, when it was set at 3.98 billion won ($2.8 million). Even after minimal adjustments, the acquisition budget continued to hover
Oct. 22, 2025 -
Oasis heats up chilly night with timeless anthems
Even before Oasis struck its first chord Tuesday night, Daehwa Station on Subway Line No. 3 was packed with fans snaking through the platforms, all eager to reach Goyang Sports Complex in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, for the legendary British rock band's long-awaited concert. At 8 p.m. sharp, the venue screens flickered to life. "Welcome, this is not a drill," the opening video declared. Then came the words every fan had waited to hear: "The great wait is over. This is happening. This is it." As f
Oct. 22, 2025 -
Korean artists' recipes for broken hearts in Bukhara’s first biennial
BUKHARA, Uzbekistan — The ancient Silk Road city of Bukhara, Uzbekistan, is hosting its inaugural international art event, the Bukhara Biennial, under the theme “Recipe for Broken Hearts.” The mandate for all 200 participants from 39 countries — to create new commissions exclusively on Uzbek soil in collaboration with local artisans — has fostered a powerful dialogue between global contemporary art and Central Asia’s storied craft traditions. Among the more than 70 works born of these collaborat
Oct. 21, 2025 -
Why veteran pansori singer Lee Ja-ram takes on one-woman battle in 'Prima Facie'
Before stepping into the light, Lee Ja-ram repeats a single line to herself in the dark: “I am Tessa Jane Ensler. I am Tessa Jane Ensler.” For Lee — a veteran pansori singer with more than three decades of experience, who also wears many hats as a musical performer, writer, director and actor — this moment is an unfamiliar challenge: a one-woman play. The 46-year-old performer is hardly new to standing alone onstage. In pansori, a singer commands the space singlehandedly, accompanied only by a g
Oct. 21, 2025 -
Free performances across Gyeongju celebrate vibrant Korean traditions ahead of APEC
As world leaders gather in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, for the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, the ancient capital of the Silla Kingdom is set to become the stage for a grand celebration of traditional Korean arts. “Seorabeol Pungnyu,” a special cultural project held in conjunction with the summit, brings the spirit of a 1,000 years to life. From Wednesday to Oct. 29, visitors can enjoy free nightly performances at outdoor venues across the city’s historic sites, includin
Oct. 21, 2025 -
Cheomseongdae observatory lights up with star-themed media facade for APEC summit
GYEONGJU, North Gyeongsang Province — Cheomseongdae Observatory, one of Asia’s oldest surviving astronomical observatories and a symbol of Silla-era astronomy, has been transformed into a nighttime spectacle ahead of the 2025 APEC summit. On Monday, the Korea Heritage Service and the city of Gyeongju launched a special projection mapping show titled “Time of the Stars” at the observatory’s exterior. The media facade will be presented nightly through Nov. 1, coinciding with the APEC summit. The o
Oct. 20, 2025 -
Between fear, fascination: Lee Jin-joon explores memory in age of AI
Being in between always comes with a sense of unease. Sometimes it feels like going through a dark tunnel and telling yourself, “Hang in there, light will come.” Media artist Lee Jin-joon regards the times we are living in as such a state: People are experiencing the overwhelming technology of artificial intelligence. After this period, the artist said, we will enter an era of the post-AI where the AI is deeply integrated into society as a foundational infrastructure. “What terrifies me is not l
Oct. 20, 2025 -
Ancient Silla commander’s remains, gilt-bronze crown fragments unveiled
GYEONGJU, North Gyeongsang Province — For the first time, remains of a male military commander from the Silla Kingdom (57 BC-AD 935), along with fragments from his gilt-bronze crown, body armor and helmet have been found in a significant breakthrough in the study of the ancient Korean kingdom. The artifacts were discovered in the first outer coffin tomb, dating back to the 4th and 5th centuries, beneath a royal burial mound in Hwangnam-dong, Gyeongju. The excavation, led by the Korea Heritage Se
Oct. 20, 2025 -
W Korea apologizes after breast cancer charity event draws backlash as ‘celebrity party’
Charity galas are meant to blend glamour with goodwill. But when the spotlight shifts too much toward spectacle and the funds raised fall short, public criticism often follows. That is what happened to W Korea. On Sunday, the magazine issued a public apology after its annual breast cancer awareness campaign, Love Your W, was criticized for feeling more like a celebrity party than a charity event, especially given the modest amount it raised. The company apologized four days after Wednesday's eve
Oct. 20, 2025 -
'It’s me, unfiltered, revealed to the world.”: Ha Ji-won’s journey into art
Veteran actor Ha Ji-won, in her new solo exhibition “Phenomenal Change: Looking into the Reason I Am Myself,” greets her audience not through a glowing screen, but through her canvases. “There was always confusion between Ha Ji-won the actor and the person I really am,” Ha told The Korea Herald ahead of her solo exhibition opening on Sept. 27. “I encounter so many emotions through the characters I play, and I love the film set deeply, but there was always something within me that remained unfulf
Oct. 20, 2025 -
In Korea's ring-heavy dating culture, is wedding band still essential?
As wedding costs continue to climb, more Koreans are rethinking one of marriage's most enduring symbols: the wedding rings. A recent survey by matchmaking agency Duo found that Korean couples spent an average of 360 million won ($253,000) on wedding preparations — including costs associated with the marital home — in 2023 and 2024. As expenses rise, some are cutting back where they can, starting with the rings, which many couples may already have from earlier stages of their relationships. “It f
Oct. 20, 2025 -
Seoul becomes capital of webtoons, heart of K-content this week
Jamsil-gu in southeastern Seoul has transformed into a playground for webtoon lovers this week. The 2025 World Webtoon Festival kicked off Sunday across Lotte Town, a vast complex connecting Lotte World, Lotte World Tower, Lotte World Mall and Lotte Hotel World. The event brings together creators, platforms and fans from around the world for a four-day celebration of imagination, innovation and the ever-expanding influence of webtoons. The festival, cohosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports an
Oct. 19, 2025 -
Largest collection of stone rubbings donated to National Museum of Korea
More than a thousand stone rubbings — created and collected over 40 years by the Ven. Heungseon, a master of the art of stone rubbing, or takbon in Korean — have found a new home at the National Museum of Korea. The donation is Korea's largest in scale, showing the evolution of Korea’s epigraphic culture spanning from the Three Kingdoms (57 BC-AD 668) to Joseon era (1392-1910), according to NMK. "By overcoming the inaccuracies and fragmentary nature of earlier rubbings, he systemically surveyed
Oct. 19, 2025 -
Two exhibitions bring 19th-century Europe to Seoul
Two exhibitions in Seoul invite audiences to journey through Europe’s 19th century with museum collections from Italy and France. “The 19th-Century Collection From Capodimonte Museum” at My Art Museum revisits the southern coastal city of Naples through the lens of verismo, while another exhibition, “The Orangerie Museum and the Orsay Museum: Cezanne and Renoir,” at Seoul Art Center’s Hangaram Design Museum, sheds light on the legacy of Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Cezanne and Pablo Picasso. The
Oct. 18, 2025 -
National Museum of Korea tops 5m visitors for the first time in 80 years
Worldwide, only five museums attract over 5 million visitors a year. Now, South Korea’s National Museum of Korea joins the ranks of the Louvre in Paris, the Vatican Museums, the British Museum, and New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, having welcomed 5,016,382 visitors as of Wednesday. The Seoul-based museum announced Friday that its annual visitor count has surpassed 5 million for the first time since its founding 80 years ago. Between Jan. 1 and Wednesday, the museum recorded a 69.7 percent
Oct. 17, 2025