Art and Culture

We're back again with the latest art and culture news.
So for those of you who are wondering what to do this afternoon and for the rest of the week, our arts and culture reporter Michelle Kim is here to give you all the details.
Hello, Michelle.
What do you have for us today

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[Reporter : Michelle Kim] Hello, Conn-young.
Well, to start us off, I have a very interesting exhibition that covers "the aesthetics of fermentation".
It sounds like an odd theme doesn't it Yes it does.
I have to assume we're talking about food here, right

[Reporter : ] I would seem like it, but just like fermenting food, this exhibition is all about the beauty of repetition and anticipation in artwork.
All of the paintings have been painted over and over again to show the so-called process of fermenting artwork.
Let's take a closer look.

A single dot on a plain white canvas and a repetition of patterns throughout this piece of modern art gives viewers the liberty to interpret the artwork any way they like.
A square shape surrounds the infinite number of dots that are drawn on a large canvas.
Every time a different shade is painted over, layer after layer, a deep and wide outer space can be seen.
A thick line is painted freely across the canvas.
It may seem to be dancing aimlessly across the white background, but the weighty line shows the painter's vigorous style.

[Interview : Lee Kang-so, Artist] "The process of creating the artwork consists of having a clear state of mind and painting with one stroke of a brush.
The result is created by the relationship between the painter, viewer, and the canvas".

A hole is made through the naturally colored traditional Korean paper, Hanji, to portray the sensitivity and serenity, and another canvas is painted in bold colors to emphasize a nervous tension.
Instead of using vivid colors and various techniques, monochrome painting uses just one or two patterns and colors to fill up the empty space.
Korean monochrome painting uses simple patterns and colors, but most of all accentuates the materials to its maximum.

[Interview : Yoon Jin-sub, Curator] "Korean monochrome art is different from westernized art in that both the touch
and sensitivity of the artwork is much more prominent".

Patience is needed to finish an artwork made up of simple dots and lines, and the empty space.
It is here, within the 150 artworks shown at Korea's largest monochrome painting exhibition, that you will be able to find the aesthetics of fermentation.

[Reporter : ed:scott] The exhibition, "Dansaekhwa: Korean Monochrome Painting" will be held at the National Museum of Contemporary Art until May 13th.

I'm really curious to see how the paintings will follow this particular theme.

[Reporter : ] Me too, I'm usually not a huge fan of minimal art because I find it sometimes hard to appreciate the beauty of empty space, so for those of you who are like me, I feel like this exhibition will help us recognize the importance of the need for patience and "fermentation" to create beautiful artwork.

What else do you have for us today[Reporter : ] Well, Conn-young, you have a smartphone right Yes I do.

[Reporter : ] Well then, you can be a director of a movie!

I can[Reporter : ] Director Lee Joon-ik has made a movie using a smartphone for the 2nd smartphone film festival.
With the help of students and ordinary citizens, Lee Jun-Ik was able to produce the film "Kisses of Spring".
Here are the details.

Smart phones have heralded the age of convenience and speed... even for moviemaking.
It is now possible to make a movie in under 6 hours thanks to smart phone technology.
It is a warm spring day and a happy family enjoys being outdoors and giving each other pecks on the cheek.
Kisses shared with a puppy, with one's adored child, even with the young greens of spring, and in honor of a goal just scored by a football player.
This is a montage of the frames that make up "Kisses from Spring", the movie that kicked off the smart phone film festival.
The moviemakers gave smartphone users around the country one day to record a clip according to a unified theme; they then selected a handful of videos and edited the collection to make this movie.
The selection was made from 100 clips, and the chosen videos were matched-up with appropriate soundtrack music, voice-overs and subtitles - this whole process was completed in less than 6 hours.
This movie was literally put together on the spot, compared to ordinary movies that usually take months, even years, to be made.

[Interview : Lee Joon-ik, Executive Committee Smartphone Film Festival] "I did not make this movie by myself, it took the cooperation of people from all around the nation, and as a Director I tried my best to apply this".

This is the second smartphone film festival, seeing a variety of people participating; from professionals to high school students, office workers, even actors. The festival was able to produce 600 different films.
Films that were shown this year engaged with audiences through themes such as the hardships of the youth of this generation, love and music as well as social critiques.
A hiphop artist won the grand prize this year with a 'fantasy' piece.

[Interview : Chae Yeo-Joon, Grand Prize] "I wanted to talk about how music is part of our culture but it is saddening to see how it can be driven by money, neglecting those non-mainstream genres that do not bring in the big bucks".

Today there are more than 20 million smartphone users in Korea.
And it is interesting to see that smartphones are no longer relegated to a means of communication but they are becoming part of our culture.

[Reporter : ed:scott] So for those of you with a smartphone in your hands, you can record a video of
anything and submit it to the next smartphone film festival and possibly debut as a director.

So you're telling me I can record a video with my smartphone and become a director[Reporter : ] That is right.
Isn't it amazingAbsolutely!
I'm going to have to start recording videos of everything now.

[Reporter : ] I am going to do the same as well.

Well, moving on, you have more events for us[Reporter : ] Yes I do, I have more events on a lecture, a peace concert, and another
exhibition.
Take a look.

[Reporter : ed:mark] This bulletin features three events.

The Korea Foundation will hold six lectures on Korean films from March 26th at the Mirae Asset Building.
This lecture will be showing local movies produced between 1958 and 2001 to help foreigners get a perspective of the local scene.

Arirang TV will broadcast a Peace concert featuring Korean traditional music on March 25th to promote the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit.
The concert features various forms of gugak performances, with musicians Kim Yong-woo, Park Ae-ri and Ccot-byel.

 

Thank you Michelle and we will see you tomorrow

[Reporter : ] Thank you.