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Museum_News ‘Centre Pompidou Hanwha’ to Open on June 4 with Inaugural Cubism Exhibition
The Centre Pompidou Hanwha, established through a partnership between the Hanwha Foundation of Culture and France’s Centre Pompidou, is set to open this June at the 63 Building in Yeouido, Seoul. Following the completion of construction in late February, the museum will undergo interior installation and final preparations before welcoming visitors starting June 4.
2026.04.07
Artist_News Media Artist Jinjoon Lee’s 10-Meter Hanji Scroll Ph.D. Thesis Enters the Permanent Collection of the World’s Oldest Museum
Media artist Jinjoon Lee’s doctoral thesis at the University of Oxford, “Empty Garden – A Liminoid Journey to Nowhere in Somewhere” (2020), has been officially acquired by the Ashmolean Museum in the United Kingdom. It will be permanently housed and exhibited, marking the first time a work by a Korean contemporary artist has entered the museum’s collection.
Artist_News Media Artist Jinjoon Lee’s 10-Meter Hanji Scroll Ph.D. Thesis Enters the Permanent Collection of the World’s Oldest Museum
Media artist Jinjoon Lee’s doctoral thesis at the University of Oxford, “Empty Garden – A Liminoid Journey to Nowhere in Somewhere” (2020), has been officially acquired by the Ashmolean Museum in the United Kingdom. It will be permanently housed and exhibited, marking the first time a work by a Korean contemporary artist has entered the museum’s collection.
Museum_News ‘Centre Pompidou Hanwha’ to Open on June 4 with Inaugural Cubism Exhibition
The Centre Pompidou Hanwha, established through a partnership between the Hanwha Foundation of Culture and France’s Centre Pompidou, is set to open this June at the 63 Building in Yeouido, Seoul. Following the completion of construction in late February, the museum will undergo interior installation and final preparations before welcoming visitors starting June 4.
Museum_News Busan Museum of Art to Host International Media Art Festival “2026 Loop Lab Busan”
The Busan Museum of Art has announced that it will host the international digital media art festival “2026 Loop Lab Busan” from April 16 through June 28. Now in its second edition, Loop Lab Busan is an international festival centered on time-based and image-driven digital media art, featuring a range of programs including exhibitions and forums.
2026.03.31
Museum_News MMCA Launches Reconstruction of Standard Art Collection Management System
The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) announced that it will begin a project this year to rebuild its standard art collection management system. Since 2011, the museum has distributed its collection management system to a total of 57 public art museums across the country.
Museum_News Nam June Paik 20th Anniversary Commemoration: 2026 Major Programs at the Nam June Paik Art Center
The Nam June Paik Art Center (Director: Park Namhee) has announced its major initiatives for 2026, grounded in the Center’s vision of “a museum connected through art and technology.” Reflecting this vision, the museum will actively implement exhibitions, educational programs, academic projects, and public events throughout the year.
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Nonprofit
Nonprofit_News SONGEUN Resumes ‘SONGEUN x STEDELIJK: Video Club’ in Collaboration with the Stedelijk Museum
The SONGEUN Art and Cultural Foundation will resume the “SONGEUN x STEDELIJK: Video Club” screening program this coming April. Organized in collaboration with the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, the program was successfully held four times between 2023 and 2024. Beginning in 2026, it will return with expanded scale and deeper discourse, supported by Bulgari Korea.
2026.03.24
Nonprofit_News ACC Launches ‘ACC CREATORS 2026 Residency’ Open Call Program
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s National Asian Culture Center (ACC) is launching a global open call for creators to participate in the “ACC CREATORS 2026 Residency,” a support program for interdisciplinary content creation and production. Applications will be accepted until March 1.
Nonprofit_News SONGEUN Art and Cultural Foundation Unveils SONGEUN’s Exhibition Line-up of 2026
The SONGEUN Art and Cultural Foundation marks the 25th anniversary of the SONGEUN Art Award and the 5th anniversary of the opening of its new building by revisiting the meaning embedded in the name “SONGEUN (松隱).” To this end, the foundation will present a series of exhibitions featuring contemporary Korean artists in 2026.
Biennale_News 2024 Busan Biennale “Seeing in the Dark” Opens August 17
The 2024 Busan Biennale, hosted by the City of Busan and the Busan Biennale Organizing Committee, announced that it will open on August 17 and run through October 20. The Organizing Committee has confirmed the theme “Seeing in the Dark” and is accelerating preparations for the exhibition, including the selection of exhibitors and works. The exhibition, led by co-curators Vera Mey and Philippe Pirotte, will utilize exhibition venues in the original city center, including the Busan Museum of Contemporary Art and the Busan Modern & Contemporary History Museum.
2024.04.01
Biennale_News The 15th Gwangju Biennale “Pansori, a soundscape of the 21st century” Unveils Participating Artists
Gwangju Biennale announced the artists participating in the 15th Gwangju Biennale “Pansori, a soundscape of the 21st century,” which will be held on September 7.
The 15th Gwangju Biennale “Pansori, a soundscape of the 21st century” is an opera-like exhibition about the spaces we live in, from our personal residences to the planet Earth where we are rooted. As landscape is also sound, the exhibition is composed of a narrative that connects musical and visual forms together.
Biennale_News Korean Art Exhibition Plans in Conjunction with the 60th Venice Biennale Are Unveiled
On January 31, Arts Council Korea held a joint press conference on the Korean art exhibitions to be held during the 60th Venice Biennale. A total of seven institutions, foundations, galleries, and organizations jointly participated in the press conference, starting with the announcement of the plans for the 30th anniversary special exhibition of the Korean Pavilion by the ARKO Art Center, which is affiliated with the Arts Council Korea, followed by the announcement of the plans for the four parallel exhibitions officially selected by the Venice Biennale Foundation (Gwangju Biennale, Yoo Youngkuk Art Foundation, Korean Research Institute of Contemporary Art, and Hansol Cultural Foundation) and the two exhibitions to be held in Venice (Gallery Hyundai and Nine Dragon Heads). This is the first time that the public and private organizations have jointly announced exhibition plans.
2024.02.12
Biennale_News Gwangju Biennale's New Exhibition Hall Set to Open in 2027
The new exhibition hall for the Gwangju Biennale will be developed as an open cultural space accessible to citizens. Gwangju City has announced the selection of the winning design, “Landscape of Communication and Cultural Imagination,” by a jury of university professors and architects for constructing the Gwangju Biennale Exhibition Hall. The winning design, submitted jointly by Tomoon Architects & Engineers, USD Space, and Regaon Architects & Planners, proposed an open cultural convergence exhibition hall with an international reputation for the Gwangju Biennale.
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).
Gallery_News Korea’s First Sculpture-Dedicated Gallery ‘Space Tone’ Opens in Hapjeong, Seoul
Korea’s first sculpture- dedicated gallery, Space Tone (S.tone), has opened in Hapjeong-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul. While most sculpture-dedicated venues in Korea are located on the outskirts of Seoul due to the scale and weight of the works, Space Tone stands out as a space situated in the heart of the city—offering visitors the opportunity to encounter sculpture naturally in their everyday lives.
2025.11.18
Gallery_News Five Young Galleries to Watch in Seoul, Picked by ARTnews
On September 1, ARTnews, the American art magazine, spotlighted five emerging Seoul galleries to watch. Unlike the city’s more traditional galleries, these new spaces stand out for their distinctive sense of place and independent programs. The ARTnews highlighted PS CENTER, WWNN, Shower, Sangheeut, and Xlarge.
Gallery_News Gallery Hyundai Selected Among “The 10 Best Booths at Art Basel 2025”
Gallery Hyundai’s booth (G13) at Art Basel 2025 has been selected by Artsy as one of “The 10 Best Booths at Art Basel 2025.” The featured presentation is a solo booth dedicated to Seung-taek Lee, a pioneering figure in Korean experimental art, and is the only solo presentation among the ten selected booths.
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.
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.
Art Fair_News Highlights to Watch at ‘Kiaf SEOUL 2025’
From September 3 to 7, Kiaf SEOUL 2025, the largest art fair in Korea, will take place at COEX in Seoul. This year’s edition brings together 175 galleries from over 20 countries.
2025.09.02
Art Fair_News 10 Must-See Artists Selected by ‘Frieze Seoul 2025’
At Frieze Seoul 2025, a wide range of solo presentations will unfold across the Galleries, Focus Asia, and Masters sections. The fair will not only highlight the breadth of historically significant artists’ careers but also spotlight bold new works and large-scale installations by emerging talents.
2025.09.02
Art Fair_News An Open Platform for Artistic Discourse at ‘Kiaf·Frieze Seoul 2025’
At Korea’s largest art fairs, Kiaf·Frieze Seoul 2025, an open platform for artistic discourse, the “Kiaf x KAMS x Frieze Seoul Talk Program”, will take place from September 4 to 6 at Studio 159 on the 2nd floor of COEX, Seoul.
2025.09.02
Art Fair_News How to Enjoy ‘Frieze Seoul 2025’ to the Fullest
The fourth edition of the Frieze Seoul returns to COEX in the city’s Gangnam neighbourhood from 3 – 6 September, and, in keeping with previous editions, will feature an expansive programme of live art and performance, film, talks and artist projects alongside presentations from 120 galleries.
2025.08.26
Art Fair_News ‘Kiaf SEOUL 2025’ to Unfold as a Vibrant Art Festival
Kiaf SEOUL 2025, Korea’s largest art fair, will take place from Wednesday, September 3 to Sunday, September 7 at COEX in Gangnam, Seoul. During Kiaf Art Week, Kiaf will collaborate with Frieze Seoul as well as domestic and international art institutions to present a wide range of programs, offering audiences a unique opportunity to engage with art.
2025.08.26
Art Fair_News Korean Galleries Make Strong Statement at Art Basel Hong Kong 2025 Amid Market Slowdown
Art Basel Hong Kong 2025 officially opened on March 26 with a VIP preview at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, drawing attention as Asia’s largest art fair resumes at full scale. Despite a global art market slowdown, Korean galleries are showing remarkable presence and vitality at this year’s event.
Art+_News Galleries Associations of Korea & Gwangju Biennale Sign MOU to Advance the Globalization of Korean Art
The Galleries Association of Korea (Chairman Sunghoon Lee) and the Gwangju Biennale Foundation (President Youn Bummo) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on February 6, 2026 (Friday), formally launching a collaborative partnership to expand the presence of Korean art both domestically and internationally and to strengthen global exchange.
2026.02.17
Art+_News Art Service Industry Reporting System to Take Effect This July
With the enforcement of the Art Promotion Act, South Korea’s art distribution sector—previously operated as a free profession without separate qualification requirements—will be incorporated into a formal regulatory framework starting this year.
2026.01.13
Art+_News First Overseas Exhibition of the “Lee Kun-hee Collection” Surpasses 15,000 Visitors Within One Month of Opening
Titled 《Korean Treasures: Collected, Cherished, Shared》, the first overseas touring exhibition of the Lee Kun-hee Collection—donated by the late Lee Kun-hee, former chairman of Samsung Group—has attracted strong local interest, surpassing 15,000 visitors within its first month since opening at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, D.C.
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