Top News Picks - K-ARTNOW
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Delivering essential Korean contemporary art news every week.

Latest News

Artist_News Young Korean Artist Sang Woo Kim in the Spotlight at Art Fiera Bologna 2025 The work of young Korean artist Sang Woo Kim (b. 1994) has been selected for the ‘Marval Acquisition Award,’ organized by Art Fiera Bologna 2025. Held annually in Bologna, Italy,
2025.02.18
Nonprofit_News Corporate Cultural Foundations Triple Their Contribution to Arts and Culture Over the Past Decade On the 11th, the Arts Council Korea (ARKO) released a report on the state of arts and culture sponsorship by corporate cultural foundations—nonprofit organizations established by domestic companies to support arts and culture. The report revealed that corporate contributions have tripled over the past decade.
2025.02.18
Art never stopped a war and never got anybody a job. That was never its function. Art cannot change events, but it can change people. It can affect people so that they are changed.

Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990, Musician)

Artist

Artist_News Young Korean Artist Sang Woo Kim in the Spotlight at Art Fiera Bologna 2025 The work of young Korean artist Sang Woo Kim (b. 1994) has been selected for the ‘Marval Acquisition Award,’ organized by Art Fiera Bologna 2025. Held annually in Bologna, Italy,
2025.02.18
Artist_News Artist Young-jun Tak Wins the Grand Prize at the ‘24th SONGEUN Art Award’ Korean artist Young-jun Tak (b. 1989) has been named the grand prize winner of the 24th SONGEUN Art Award, operated by SONGEUN Art and Cultural Foundation.
2025.01.14
Artist_News Artist Sojin Kwak Selected as the First Winner of ‘Sisley Award for Young Creation Korea’ Sojin Kwak (b. 1993), an emerging media artist from Korea, has been selected as the first winner of the ‘Sisley Award for Young Creation Korea,’ organized by Trois Cinq Friedland, the cultural foundation of the French cosmetics company Sisley.
2025.01.07
Artist_News The Samsung Foundation of Culture Selected Hyojoo Jang and Eunsae Lee as Residents at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris for 2025 The Samsung Foundation of Culture selected Hyojoo Jang and Eunsae Lee as the resident artists for 2025 at Cité Internationale des Arts.
2024.12.31
Artist_News Artist Kim Yun Shin Named One of ‘The Most Influential Artists of 2024’ by Artsy Kim Yun Shin (b. 1935), a first-generation Korean female sculptor who showcased active international activities last year, was named one of the ‘Most Influential Artists of 2024’ by the global art platform Artsy.
2024.12.31
Artist_News Artist Chung Hyun Named One of the ‘Editor’s Picks’ at Art Basel Miami Beach 2024 Chung Hyun, an artist represented by PKM Gallery, was featured on the Editor’s Picks list for Art Basel Miami Beach 2024, held from December 4 to 8.
2024.12.17

Museum

Museum_News The World’s First ‘Floating Museum’ in Shinan County to Open This May The world's first floating museum is set to open this May in Anjwa Island, Shinan County, Jeollanam-do. The "Floating Museum" is located near the birthplace of Kim Whanki, a pioneer of Korean abstract art, on a reservoir in the town of Eopdong, Anjwa-myeon.
2025.02.18
Museum_News Nam June Paik Art Center Has Published “Technical Report on the Art of Nam June Paik Ⅰ” Online On January 29, to mark the 19th anniversary of Nam June Paik’s passing, the Nam June Paik Art Center published the “Technical Report on the Art of Nam June Paik I” online to support the research and preservation of his works.
2025.02.11
Museum_News Sorol Art Museum to Reopen Under a New Name in April The Sorol Art Museum in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, which opened in February last year, will be renamed "Gangneung Art Museum Sorol" (tentative name) in April and newly operated as a municipal art museum.
2025.02.04
Museum_News Seoul Museum of Art to Complete Eight-Branch System by 2025 This year, the Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA) will open two new branches—the Photography Seoul Museum of Art (Photo SeMA) and SeMA Seo-Seoul Museum of Art—completing its "network-style museum" system.
2025.01.28
Museum_News The Museum Honoring Suh Se Ok, Master of Ink Abstract Painting, to Open in Seongbuk-gu in 2028 A museum dedicated to the late Suh Se Ok (1929~2020), a master of Korean ink abstract painting, tentatively named the ‘Suh Se Ok Art Museum,’ is set to open in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, in 2028.
2025.01.21
Museum_News MMCA Unveils Its 2025 Exhibition Line-up and Major Project The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) held a press conference on 7 January, to announce its 2025 exhibition plans, major projects, and operational direction.
2025.01.14

Nonprofit

Nonprofit_News Corporate Cultural Foundations Triple Their Contribution to Arts and Culture Over the Past Decade On the 11th, the Arts Council Korea (ARKO) released a report on the state of arts and culture sponsorship by corporate cultural foundations—nonprofit organizations established by domestic companies to support arts and culture. The report revealed that corporate contributions have tripled over the past decade.
2025.02.18
Nonprofit_News The House of Painter Kim Tschang-Yeul to Be Reborn as a Public Cultural Facility in 2026 Jongno-gu has announced plans to transform the late world-renowned ‘water drop’ painter Kim Tschang-Yeul’s house in Pyeongchang-dong into a public cultural facility called 'Kim Tschang-Yeul Atelier.'
2025.02.11
Nonprofit_News Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture Announces New Operational Direction for the Globalization of Korean Arts and Culture On January 23, Song Hyung Jong, the newly appointed CEO of the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture (SFAC), announced the foundation’s key directions for 2025. Aiming to position Seoul among the world's top five cultural cities, SFAC outlined a range of initiatives.
2025.02.04
Nonprofit_News ACC Celebrates 10th Anniversary with Major Exhibitions and Programs of 2025 The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s National Asian Culture Center (ACC), celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, has unveiled its major exhibitions and programs for 2025. In May, the 《ACC Future Sports Day》 will take place at ACC Creation Space 1, merging media art, physical activity, and play.
2025.01.28
Nonprofit_News Incheon Art Platform to be funded by Incheon Foundation For Arts & Culture from Next year Fifteen years after its establishment, the Incheon Art Platform, which plays an important role in the development of contemporary art in Korea, will be operated independently from the city of Incheon.
2024.12.24
Nonprofit_News Olafur Eliason’s Latest Work ‘Breathing earth sphere’ Has Been Unveiled on Docho Island in Shinan County On the 15th, world-renowned Icelandic-Danish artist Olafur Eliasson (b. 1967) unveiled his latest work, 숨결의 지구 (Breathing earth sphere), on Docho Island, Shinan County, Jeollanam-do, South Korea. The installation, part of a larger initiative by Shinan County that celebrates the region's natural beauty, centers around public art projects that draw attention to reimagining the immediate environment.
2024.12.03

Biennale

Biennale_News The 13th Seoul Mediacity Biennale Will Announce Exhibition Theme Through Pre-Biennale Program “Notes for a Séance” The Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA) will host a pre-biennale program titled "Notes for a Séance” on November 30 at SeMA Hall, introducing the curatorial direction and concept of the 13th Seoul Mediacity Biennale.
2024.11.26
Biennale_News 2024 Daejeon Art and Science Biennale Spin Off “Magnum Opus” on View Through February 2, 2025 Marking its fourth edition, the Daejeon Art and Science Biennale opened on October 25 under the title “Magnum Opus” As the only biennale in Korea dedicated to the theme of science and art, it will run until February 2 of next year at the Daejeon Museum of Art, Daejeon Creative Center, from the corner (Jeong-dong, Dong-gu), and GONGGAN55 (Seonhwa-dong, Jung-gu).
2024.11.12
Biennale_News Anton Vidokle, Hallie Ayres, and Lukas Brasiskis Appointed as the Artistic Directors of the 13th Seoul Mediacity Biennale On October 14, the Seoul Museum of Art announced the appointment of Anton Vidokle, Hallie Ayres, and Lukas Brasiskis as the artistic directors for the 13th Seoul Mediacity Biennale, scheduled for August 2025.
2024.10.22
Biennale_News Gangwon International Triennale 2024 “Ecological Art from the Beneath”, on View Through October 27 The Gangwon International Triennale 2024, hosted by Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province and organized by the Gangwon Art & Cultural Foundation and Pyeongchang County, opened on September 26 and will run until October 27 across various locations in Pyeongchang County.
2024.10.08
Biennale_News The 7th Changwon Sculpture Biennale’s Various Programs Are Unveiled Starting on September 28, the symposium program “Seed and Peel” will be held at the Small Theater of Seongsan Art Hall. The symposium is scheduled for September 28 from 10 am to 4 pm and on September 29 from 1 pm to 4 pm, with simultaneous English translation available.
2024.09.24
Biennale_News The 7th Changwon Sculpture Biennale’s Pre-Exhibition Programs Successfully Concludes Since last July, the pre-exhibition programs for the Changwon Sculpture Biennale have been underway. The first citizen-participation program, “AVP X Muhayu” (July 15-18), took place at Audio Visual Pavilion (AVP) in Seoul and Muhayu in Changwon, featuring Jeuno JE Kim & Ewa Einhorn, who are based in Copenhagen, Denmark, and Malmö, Sweden, and Sooncheon No, an artist based in Changwon.
2024.09.24

Art Market

Art Market_News The Korean Art Auction Market in the 3rd Quarter of 2024 Saw 26% Decrease Compared to the Previous Year The "2024 3rd Quarter Art Market Report," released on October 31 by the Korea Art Authentication & Appraisal Research Center's corporate research lab KAAI, indicated that the slump in the Korean art market continues.
2024.11.19
Art Market_News South Korea’s MCST Plans to Implement Art Policies for the Continued Growth of the Korean Art Market, Which Exceeded 1 Trillion KRW in 2022 Over the past year, many local experts predicted that the size of the Korean art market would surpass 1 trillion KRW (Korean won) in 2022. This speculation has turned out to be true, as the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) and the Korea Arts Management Service (KAMS) announced on January 4, 2023, that the size of the art market in 2022 was estimated to be 1.0377 trillion KRW (approximately $1 billion USD).
2023.01.09
Art Market_News "Korea Art Market 2022" Delivers Various Trends and Issues in the Korean Art Market in English The most-searched term in the Korean art world in 2022 was “Frieze Seoul.” The inaugural fair received not only explosive attention from the domestic art world but also aroused international interest in the Korean art market, bringing many global artists to Korea.
2023.01.02
Art Market_News Korean Arts Management Services Estimates the Size of the Korean Art Market in 2021 The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Korea (MCST) and the Korean Arts Management Services (KAMS) have been publishing a report on the previous year’s Korean art market since 2008.
2022.02.21

Auction

Auction_News Seoul Auction to Host ‘Connect Seoul 2024’ During Frieze·Kiaf Seoul Week Seoul Auctions hosts ‘Connect Seoul 2024,’ a series of exhibitions and events from August 24 to September 13 at its Gangnam Center, to coincide with Frieze-Kiaf Seoul Week. Connect Seoul consists of two special exhibitions highlighting major Korean and international artists of modern and contemporary art, a group exhibition of media art, and a preview of upcoming auctions.
2024.09.03
Auction_News SBI Art Auction to Host Its First Overseas Auction Preview at Art Chosun Space in Seoul Japan’s SBI Art Auction will present its first overseas auction preview, "Early Highlight Viewing in Seoul," from October 1 to 6 at Art Chosun Space (ACS) in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. The preview is part of the "68th SBI Art Auction | MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY ART" to be held on October 25 and 26.
2024.08.13
Auction_News Global Auction House Phillips Appoints Lim Yeon-ah to Lead the Korean office On the 5th, Phillips, one of the world’s top three auction houses, appointed Lim Yeon-ah as the head of its Korean office. Since joining Phillips in 2020, she has overseen Phillips exhibitions during the Frieze Seoul art fair over the past two years.
2023.12.11
Auction_News 3 Korean Women Leaders Who Are Demonstrating Their Leadership at the Asian Offices of the World's Top 3 Art Auction Houses Today, many women figures are active in the contemporary art world, trying to reflect diversity and fostering Korean art.
2022.11.28
Auction_News Phillips Will Hold Its First Exhibition in South Korea during the Frieze Art Fair in Seoul Phillips, one of the three largest auction houses in the world with headquarters in London, has announced that it will hold its first exhibition in Seoul concurrently with the Frieze Seoul and Kiaf Seoul art fairs.
2022.08.15
Auction_News Christie’s First Exhibition in South Korea, What Does This Mean for the Local Art Market? The booming Korean art market attracts many international art galleries and art fairs to Seoul. World-renowned galleries, including König Galerie, Thaddeus Ropac, and Gladstone Gallery, have opened a branch in Seoul, and Frieze has partnered with Kiaf SEOUL to hold art fairs in Seoul for five years from this year.
2022.08.01

Art Fair

Art Fair_News ‘Access Bangkok’, the First Korean Art Fair to Expand Internationally The first Korean art fair to venture overseas, ‘Access Bangkok,’ was held from December 5 to 7 at ICONSIAM in Bangkok, Thailand, garnering significant attention.
2024.12.10
Art Fair_News Director Kim Jeong Eun Appointed to Lead 'T3 PHOTO ASIA’ Art Fair in Tokyo, Japan Kim Jeong Eun has been appointed as the Fair Director of ‘T3 PHOTO AISA’, which will be held at Tokyo Midtown Yaesu in Japan from October 18 to October 21.
2024.10.08
Art Fair_News Highlights at Frieze Seoul 2024 Highlights of Frieze Seoul 2024, taking place September 4-7 at COEX, Gangnam, Seoul, have been revealed. The world's leading galleries participating in Frieze Seoul 2024 are highlighting a wide range of distinguished artists in the Solo, Group, Frieze Masters, and Focus Asia sections.
2024.09.03
Art Fair_News Kiaf SEOUL 2024 to Host Special Exhibition “Kiaf onSITE: Invisible Transitions” The Galleries Association of Korea announced that it will present the special exhibition “Kiaf onSITE: Invisible Transitions” at Kiaf SEOUL 2024, which will be held for five days from September 4 to 8. “Kiaf onSITE” is a special exhibition showcasing the
2024.08.27
Art Fair_News How to Enjoy Frieze Seoul 2024 to the Fullest Frieze Seoul 2024 will not only feature a fair showcasing globally acclaimed artworks but also present the most extensive and diverse Frieze Week to date, featuring a variety of programs including cultural events in collaboration with galleries and nonprofit organizations.
2024.08.27
Art Fair_News Frieze Seoul 2024 to Feature More Than 110 of the World’s Leading Galleries From 30 Countries The third edition of Frieze Seoul takes place at COEX from 4 – 7 September, once again under the direction of Patrick Lee. Featuring more than 110 galleries spanning 30 countries, this year’s fair features a strong core of exhibitors from across Asia,
2024.08.27

Art+

Art+_News Art Basel’s Global Head of Relations Irene Kim Appointed Head of US Arts & Culture for Chanel Irene Kim, who for the last three years was the global head of VIP relations for Art Basel, has left the fair to join Chanel as head of the luxury brand’s US arts and culture division. Kim is the first person to hold the position.
2025.02.11
Art+_News Asian Art Museum of San Francisco Appoints Dr. Soyoung Lee as Director and CEO On the 14th, the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco announced that Korean curator Soyoung Lee has been appointed as the next Director and CEO of the museum. This marks the first time a Korean curator has been named to lead a major museum in the United States.
2025.01.28
Art+_News The Korean Media Artist Archive Book, “Re:spect Media Art of Korea since 2000,” Has Been Published An archive book, “Re:spect Media Art of Korea since 2000,” documenting the journeys of Korea’s leading media artists, has been published. This book is part of the media artist archive project “Re:spect Media Art of Korea since 2000,” jointly organized by Art Center Nabi, Korea’s first specialized media art institution, and ALICEON, Korea’s first media art-focused platform.
2025.01.21
Art+_News Current Status of Korean Contemporary Artworks Housed in 20 North American Art Museums On December 31, a study revealed that approximately 1,120 pieces of Korean contemporary art are housed in 20 major North American art museums. However, these collections are largely limited to works by a small number of artists with experience working in the United States.
2025.01.07
Art+_News The Editorial : 2025 A New Beginning for K-ARTNOW 2025 marks a bold new chapter for K-ARTNOW as we take a significant step forward in our mission to share Korean contemporary art with the world. Over the years, we’ve explored the vibrant and diverse stories of Korean art, connecting with readers both at home and abroad.
2025.01.01
Art+_News San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Abruptly Dismisses Korean Chief Curator Ju Eunji The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) has abruptly dismissed its Korean chief curator, Ju Eunji. On the 17th (local time), the museum announced that Ju had been removed from her duties due to "workplace misconduct" in accordance with internal regulations.
2024.12.24