The buzz around the terms Korean art, the Korean Wave(Hallyu), and K-Art is growing. When did the first international exchange of Korean art begin?

In the 1990s, with the globalization implemented under the civilian government, Korean culture began to be discussed in terms of center and periphery, pluralization, and hybrid culture. Korea’s major cultural policies, such as globalization, the Korean Wave(Hallyu), and K-ART, are inextricably linked.

The 1988 Olympics and the 1993 Daejeon Expo installed the government-led paradigm of large-scale exhibitions in Korean art. The discourse driven by the Gwangju Biennale, the Whitney Biennial, and the Science and Art Exhibitions of the 1990s are key to the study of contemporary Korean art.

In recent years, K-ART is no different from the past, only with expanded distribution platforms and content. The term Hallyu was coined as pop culture, including idols and fashion, gained prominence in the world. With the appreciation of K-prevention after COVID-19, Hallyu has deeply penetrated the Korean culture from pop culture, fashion, and music.

This talk program will examine K-ART, which is widely used in various fields, based on exhibitions held overseas. We will examine how K-ART is analyzed in the global cultural sphere in places with different cultural and historical systems, and how we define K-ART. We will examine the horizons of K-ART by focusing on the different art historical periods of Korean art.