In 2025, two of Korea’s most prominent art figures have returned to lead major cultural institutions. Yoo Hong-jun, former Administrator of the Cultural Heritage Administration, has been appointed Director of the National Museum of Korea, while Yoon Bum-mo, former Director of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA), has taken the helm as the new CEO of the Gwangju Biennale. Both are respected art historians, critics, and curators with long careers in the field. Their return has inspired expectations of “stability” and “experience.”
2025.07.29
Since the early 2020s, the global art world has undergone a rapid reconfiguration. At the heart of this transformation is an unprecedented focus on Black artists. From major museum exhibitions to art fair demand and collector interest, the entire ecosystem reflects this shift. Yet this isn't merely a passing trend. Rather, it is the visible outcome of two converging cultural forces: Postcolonialism and Political Correctness (PC).
2025.07.22
The solo exhibition of Australian hyperrealist sculptor Ron Mueck, currently being held at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA) in Seoul, is drawing more than 5,000 visitors per day and is expected to surpass 500,000 visitors within two months.
2025.07.08
On May 29, 2025, the Seoul Museum of Photography (Photography Seoul Museum of Art) opens its doors in Chang-dong, Dobong-gu, Seoul. As the first public art museum in Korea dedicated entirely to the photographic medium, this institution is not merely another museum opening—it is a historic milestone.
2025.05.27
Art Busan 2025 concluded its four-day run on May 11 at BEXCO in Haeundae, Busan. Now in its 14th edition, the fair brought together 109 galleries from 17 countries in an effort to reinforce Busan’s position as a hub of contemporary art in East Asia. However, the outcome reflected more of the current art market realities than a major shift.
2025.05.13
On April 24, 2025, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism hosted "Art Policy Talk at 3PM" at Art Korea Lab in Seoul under the theme of "Art in the Age of AI." Despite its promising topic, the event ultimately fell short of presenting a deep critical engagement or offering concrete alternatives.
2025.04.29
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“Who bought that piece?” This question often wields more power than the artwork’s intrinsic aesthetics or philosophy. In today’s art world, the collector is not merely a purchaser but a powerful actor who structures value and inscribes narrative.
2025.07.29
In the 21st century, late capitalism has evolved beyond an economy of production and consumption into a system where symbols and signs dominate value. Jean Baudrillard called this the “political economy of the sign,” where the symbolic meaning of things supersedes their material substance. In such a system, commodities are no longer just physical objects—they are bundles of signs, socially coded and ideologically charged.
2025.07.15
Fine art has always touched the deepest strata of the human spirit. It is not simply the skill of creating aesthetic objects, but the act of a living human being attempting to understand themselves. While humans have evolved by using tools, it is in writing poetry and painting images that they crossed from utility into the realm of the mind. Art was born at this very threshold, and it has defined civilization ever since.
2025.07.01
Public support was once the final bastion of art. It served as the only mechanism through which art could defend itself from the logic of the market—a space where the essence of artistic creation could be protected from the accelerating demands of capital.
2025.06.17
In today’s global art market, auctions and art fairs are no longer simply distribution channels or temporary festivities. Auctions reduce art to quantifiable numbers, while art fairs promote the rapid reproduction and immediate consumption of market-friendly works. Empowered by capital, these two forces now dictate not only the market’s direction but also the survival conditions of artists themselves.
2025.06.03
The Korean contemporary art scene today is enveloped in a profound silence—the absence of art criticism. Exhibitions abound, artworks circulate rapidly through the market, and artists are consumed at speed, but there is scarcely a voice that interprets, questions, or inscribes meaning into these movements.
2025.05.20
