Lee Kun-hee Collection Tour Heads to Chicago With 2,000 Years of Korean Art

Poster for the exhibition 'Korean National Treasures: 2,000 Years of Art' — Exhibition poster for “Korean National Treasures: 2,000 Years of Art” (National Museum of Korea)

The Lee Kun-hee Collection’s overseas tour is continuing, with Chicago set as the next stop after the first exhibition in Washington.

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art and the National Museum of Korea said on the 4th that the tour’s second exhibition, “Korean National Treasures: 2,000 Years of Art,” will be held at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Opening on the 7th, the show brings together 257 objects from 140 cultural properties spanning traditional and modern Korean art. Highlights include seven national treasures and 15 “treasures” from the National Museum of Korea, as well as 13 major works of modern and contemporary art from the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, including pieces by Kim Whanki, Park Su-geun and Chang Ucchin.

Jeong Seon’s 'Inwang Jesaekdo' — Jeong Seon’s “Inwang Jesaekdo” (National Museum of Korea)

The international tour of works donated by the late Lee Kun-hee began in November last year with the special exhibition “Korea’s Treasures: Collecting, Cherishing, Sharing” at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, D.C. The museum said the show drew about 80,000 visitors, its largest attendance for a special exhibition in the past five years.

The tour now moves to Chicago, where it will run from March 7 to July 5 at the Art Institute of Chicago, described by the organizers as one of the most influential museums in the United States. The institute is housed in a building constructed for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, which the article notes was a significant venue where Joseon presented an exhibition to introduce its history and culture to the international community after the 1882 Korea-U.S. treaty.

Exterior view of the Art Institute of Chicago — The Art Institute of Chicago (Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago)

The Art Institute expanded in 2009 with the Modern Wing designed by architect Renzo Piano. Organizers said this exhibition will be the first Asian art special exhibition held in the Modern Wing’s first-floor special exhibition galleries.

Kim Hong-do’s 'Chuseongbudo' — Kim Hong-do’s “Chuseongbudo” (National Museum of Korea)

The exhibition includes many nationally designated cultural properties. Among 22 representative works from the National Museum of Korea are Jeong Seon’s “Inwang Jesaekdo,” Kim Hong-do’s “Chuseongbudo,” a white porcelain bowl inscribed with “Cheon·ji·hyeon·hwang,” a gilt-bronze Buddha from the Three Kingdoms period, the Goryeo-era “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara” painting, and the early Joseon text “Seokbosangjeol.”

Gilt-bronze standing Bodhisattva triad (National Museum of Korea)

From the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art’s Lee Kun-hee Collection, the show presents 13 modern and contemporary masterpieces reflecting Korea’s turbulent 20th-century history. In addition to Kim Whanki’s “Sanhullim 19-II-73#307” (1973) and Baek Nam-sun’s “Paradise” (1936), shown in the first tour stop, 11 newly selected works will be added.

Kim Whanki’s 'Sanhullim 19-II-73#307' (1973) — Kim Whanki, “Sanhullim 19-II-73#307,” 1973, 264×213 cm (National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art)

Among them are Lee Jung-seop’s “Bull” (1950s) and “Family and First Snow” (1950s), Park Su-geun’s “Woman Pounding Grain” (1957), and Chang Ucchin’s “Ferryboat” (1951). Also included are Kim Eun-ho’s “Ganseong” (1927), Park Rae-hyun’s “Flute” (1956), Lee Jong-woo’s “Portrait of a Friend” (1926), Lee Ungno’s “Crowd” (1988), and Kim Ki-chang’s “War Horses” (1955).

The works, once privately held, became public assets after Lee’s family donated them to the nation in 2021. Organizers said the title “Korean National Treasures” is intended not only to refer to officially designated national treasures but also to convey the idea of “the nation’s treasures” shared by the public.

After the Chicago run ends July 5, the exhibition will move to the British Museum in London, where it is scheduled to be held from Oct. 1 to 2027-01-31.

Kim Ki-chang’s 'War Horses' (1955) — Kim Ki-chang, “War Horses,” 1955, 212×122 cm (×4) (National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art)

* This article has been translated by AI.

Yoon Juhye