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Art and Culture

It's almost the end of the week, and here to help you make to best use of your free time is our arts and culture reporter Michelle Kim, who's going to share with us some intriguing events taking place around the city.
Hello Michelle.

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[Reporter : Michelle Kim] Hello Conn-young.

So what do you have for us today

[Reporter : ] Well I will be starting off with an exhibition that portrays popular culture and modern sensitivities.
The art works are very modern and sophisticated. Take a look.

Just as a nice song can help to uplift spirits and provide solace, an exhibition with a very similar purpose has opened in Seoul.
One can spy, through the iron bars, young people roaming freely as anti-war music plays in the background.
This work expresses young peoples' wish to escape the oppression of society.
The lyrics of a popular song are made out of pills and bottle caps, expressing the painful and hard life of laborers.

[Interview : Bae Young-whan, Artist] "Popular songs may be a matter of personal tastes; however, they are also the expression of a certain time or generation - an idea that I wanted to apply to my work here..."

City night lights that are brighter than daylight.
This chandelier made from broken glass bottles expresses the loneliness of the modern man.
This boxing ring painted in gold may appear glamorous but it also reflects the combative nature of life in the city.
Sculptures made from various scrap materials and a video of a shamanic dance are among the 30 different works on display.
This exhibition also strives to comfort visitors.
The artist has also created a schedule with basic information and the lyrics of popular songs.
By expressing care and love for our nameless neighbors, this exhibition reveals the possibilities for art to become a medium for healing and consolation.

[Reporter : ed:scott] The exhibition "Song for Nobody" will be held at the Samsung Art Gallery Plateau through May 20th.

The artwork seems to be a mixture of many different kinds of art, which I think will attract a greater number of visitors.

[Reporter : ] Yes, and the exhibition very much portrays the kind of loneliness and desertion one may feel in the bustling city, and also how art and popular songs can help to heal those emotions.

That does sound very comforting.

Well, moving on, I hear there is an interesting movie being released in theaters

[Reporter : ] Yes and the plot for this movie will instantly make you want to see it.
Here are the details.

 

Emperor Gojong was also known as Korea's first coffee aficionado.
Coffee expressed in Chinese characters is called "Gabi", which is also the title of this movie.

"Coffee will give off a mixed scent of fruits and flowers when it is roasted, and when brewed with hot water it releases a fragrant scent".

The Chosun dynasty's last Emperor Gojong fled to Russia after losing his wife, the Empress Myeongseong, to the Japanese military.
Gojong was known to have a real passion for coffee.

"I like the bitter taste of coffee.
After becoming a King everything I have had, has tasted bitter, except coffee - its bitterness tastes sweet to me".

The movie depicts the assassination attempt on Emperor Gojong through the subject-matter of coffee.
Emperor Gojong on the big screen is very different to the character we are familiar with.
He is not a vulnerable monarch but rather a character whose gentle appearance belies his tough spirit.
He seeks to ensure a future for the Chosun dynasty, though wedged between Russia and Japan.

"Coffee is black and bitter which makes it ideal to mix in poison".

Chosun's first barista Danya is played by actress Kim So-yeon.
Danya finds herself torn between her lover and the Emperor.
The actress has been lauded for her ability to express a range of subtle emotions, as well as the profound turmoil and confusion experienced by this character.

Danya's lover, played by Joo Jin-mo, plays the role of a hopeless romantic who sacrifices all for love.

The life and death of a historical figure told through the subject-matter of coffee, as well as a story of love, this movie is sure to capture the attention of moviegoers as much as the scent of fragrant coffee wafting through the air.

Updated : March 15, 2012

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Art and Culture 3

[Reporter : ed:scott] The film "Gabi" will be released in theaters today, so be sure to check out the movie about Chosun's FIRST barista.

I had no idea that there was coffee during the Chosun Dynasty and that there was a barista that hand-dripped coffee for the King.

[Reporter : ] I didn't either. In that sense, the storyline seems very original and different from other mystery or historical drama films.
I think we all need to watch it to see how the movie actually uses this theme, coffee, to make a mystery movie more original.

Yes, we will check it out for sure. And now you have more events for us[Reporter : ] Yes I do, I have an antique ceramics exhibition, a traditional concert and a movie for you.

[Reporter : ed:mark] Today's bulletin features an exhibition, a concert, and a movie.

Busan-based artist, Lee Jin-young will be holding a ceramics exhibiton at the Araio Gallery until April 22nd. The exhibition entitled, "Time Collected" will consist of 50 paintings of ceramics and installations of antiques he collected over the years.

In celebration of the 600th year anniversary of the construction of Gyeonghoeru Pavilion in Gyeongbok Palace, there will be a theee night-time traditional concerts from the 28th to the 30th of this month.

Korea's oldest surviving silent film, "Turning Point of the Youngsters" will be in theaters accompanied by live narration and music.
Actor Jo Hee-bong will be giving voice to the film with a new script.
The film will be screened at the Busan Cinema Center on March 25th.

Thank you for the update, Michelle. We will see you tomorrow.

[Reporter : ] Always a pleasure to be here. Thank you.

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