Lee Kun-hee Collection heads to the British Museum for third international tour stop
The exhibition, showcasing more than 2,000 years of Korean art and culture, is the renowned London institution's first major show on Korea in 42 years.
"Clearing after rain on Mount Inwang" (1751) by Jeong SeonNATIONAL MUSEUM OF KOREA
The overseas tour of the Lee Kun-hee Collection, comprising works donated by the late Samsung Chairman Lee, will continue in London this October. The exhibition will be the third international stop for the collection, following shows in Washington and Chicago.
The British Museum will present the special exhibition “Korea” from Oct. 1 through Jan. 31, 2027, it said Monday.
The exhibition will showcase more than 2,000 years of Korean art and culture, spanning from around 300 B.C. to the present day. It will be the museum's first major exhibition on Korea in 42 years. The British Museum previously hosted “Treasures from Korea: Art Through 5,000 Years” in 1984.
“At a time when Korean culture has an unprecedented global presence, often described as the Korean Wave, or hallyu, this exhibition offers important context for understanding its deeper historical roots,” the museum said. “Since the 1990s, the Korean Wave has driven the global popularity of Korea's cultural economy, exporting music, film, television and wider pop culture worldwide. By placing Korea's rich artistic heritage in a broader historical perspective, the exhibition reveals continuities and connections that extend far beyond the present moment.”
The exhibition will feature works including bronze ritual implements dating to around 300-100 B.C., a 13th-century gourd-shaped celadon ewer and Buddhist paintings.
It will also showcase celadon ceramics from the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392) and porcelain from the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910).
“From the technical mastery of Goryeo celadon ceramics, renowned for their luminous blue-green glaze and intricate inlay, to the restrained elegance of Joseon porcelain shaped by Confucian ideals, historic objects are recontextualized through their relationship with contemporary society,” the museum said.
Among its featured works, the museum also introduced painter Jeong Seon's “Clearing after the Rain on Mount Inwang” (1751) and described the painter who transformed Korean landscape painting “by depicting a distinctly recognizable local landmark with emotional depth.”
“By diving deep into the circumstances under which objects were made, this exhibition offers insight into makers and patrons across the centuries,” said Kim Sang-ah, curator of the Korean collection at the British Museum.
“A sutra inscribed by a deposed queen, an ink landscape of a mountain in Seoul, a painting of quasi-nude figures ambling through an imagined paradise and sketches inscribed on cigarette foil: these images not only illuminate Korea's history but also carry personal messages that resonate across time and cultures.”
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The Practices and Vows of SamantabhadraNATIONAL MUSEUM OF KOREA
Modern and contemporary works in the exhibition will include video art pioneer Nam June Paik's “Brahms” (1993) and painter Kim In-soong's “Woman in a Red Dress” (1965).
In addition to works from the Lee Kun-hee Collection, the exhibition will feature “Self-Portrait” (2019) by Do Ho Suh, a recent acquisition by the British Museum.
“[Do Ho Suh’s work] features as another key highlight, connecting themes of identity, migration and memory,” the museum said. “Presented alongside historic objects, it underscores the exhibition's central theme: the enduring dialogue between Korea's past and present, and the ways in which cultural identity is continually redefined.”
Nicholas Cullinan, director of the British Museum, noted that Korean artdeveloped through constant exchange, adaptation and reinvention over 2000 years.
“This exhibition brings together extraordinary works from across that long history, allowing visitors to see how ideas and forms have been reimagined across generations, and how a distinctive cultural identity has been continuously shaped in dialogue with the wider world to this very day,” Cullinan said.
The director of the National Museum of Korea, You Hong-june, remarked that the British edition presents a fresh narrative of Korea through a compelling selection featuring more National Treasures than the previous two venues in Washington, D.C., and Chicago.
“In the heart of London, visitors can discover the very roots of K-culture, which is enjoying worldwide popularity,” You said. “I look forward to welcoming many K-culture fans from across Britain and Europe.”
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
