Yoo Young-kuk exhibition draws record number of visitors to Seoul Museum of Art

Seoul Museum of Art’s (SeMA) “A Mountain Within Me” exhibition, which featured works by abstract artist Yoo Young-kuk (1916-2002), closed after breaking the museum’s record for the number of visitors to a free exhibit.

A total of 457,082 people came to “A Mountain Within Me” at SeMA’s Seosomun Main Branch. The exhibition ran from May 19 through Sunday.

That figure set a new attendance record for free exhibits at any of the museum’s branches. “From City to Coast,” which featured works by American realist Edward Hopper (1882-1967), previously held the record, drawing 331,126 visitors between April and August 2023.

“A Mountain Within Me” marked the 110th anniversary of Yoo’s birth and was also the inaugural exhibition of the museum’s “Korean Modern Masters” series.

It showcased around 170 works and traced Yoo’s artistic journey from his avant-garde art in the 1930s to his final works in 1999.

The exhibit received an average visitor satisfaction score of 95.6 out of 100, according to SeMA. That score is the highest among exhibitions at any of its locations over the past three years.

Visitors came from various age groups. Those in their 20s and 30s accounted for 35.6 percent, followed by those in their 50s at 23.9 percent and 40s at 20.6 percent.

More than 1,000 people also participated in nine academic symposia and programs about Yoo during the exhibition period. The programs brought experts from various fields, including art history, design and literature, to explore Yoo’s works from different perspectives.

“We are grateful to the more than 450,000 visitors who showed such enthusiasm for the works of Yoo, a master of Korean abstract art,” SeMA Director Choi Eun-ju said. “We will continue to showcase diverse and high-quality exhibitions that open up new possibilities and offer comfort in people’s lives.”

BY LEE TAE-HEE [[email protected]]