Frieze Art Fair returns to South Korea, offering boost to Asia's art market

Endeavor group

06/09/2023 14:06

By Hyunsu Yim
       SEOUL, Sept 6 (Reuters) - The Frieze Art Fair returned
to South Korea for a second year on Wednesday, with dealers
hoping the event would provide a boost for the burgeoning local
art market, after economic woes triggered a slump in sales this
year. 
    Art buyers flocked to Seoul's COEX convention centre to see
cutting-edge works by emerging artists, antiquity art through
the 20th century, and offerings from established galleries, such
as Gallery Hyundai, Kukje and Gana.
    The fair, run by Endeavor Group-owned  EDR.N  Frieze, made
its Asia debut in South Korea last year, drawing over 70,000
visitors.
    South Korea's art market reached 1 trillion won ($750.85
million) in revenue for the first time in 2022, according to
data from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
    However, the market shrank in the first half of this year,
with the volume of art sales by major South Korean auction
houses dropping 44.8% from a year ago, according to the Korea
Arts Management Service. 
    Despite this backdrop, the South Korean and the Asian art
market remain resilient, Patrick Lee, Director of Frieze Seoul,
told Reuters. 
    "I think it is sort of a natural evolution as collectors get
a little more sophisticated and discerning."
    With COVID travel restrictions gone, Lee is optimistic about
hosting more international visitors during this year's four-day
fair.
    Over 120 galleries from 30 countries are taking part, with
more than half of them operating spaces in Asia, the organisers
have said.
    "We have a great contingent of visitors from China coming,
Japan, all throughout the region. We've done a lot of outreach,"
Lee said.
    Seungjin Chung, founder and director of G Gallery, said
South Korea's art market has enjoyed growth in recent years led
in part by Millennial and Gen Z collectors.
    "From around three years ago, young collectors started to
show interest in the market. Celebrities and influential people
also began collecting (artwork), which I think has had an
impact."
    Some South Korean celebrities, such as RM, a member of K-pop
group BTS, have shown off their art collection and shared images
of them visiting art galleries on social media, fuelling an
interest in art among young people.
    Jungmin Cho who directs Seoul-based White Noise said taking
part in Frieze Seoul has been a new experience as her gallery
has been more of an "independent, project space" instead of
actively pursuing buyers.
    "It is a great opportunity to promote the artists we support
internationally and build relationships," she said.
    
    
    

($1 = 1,331.8200 won)

 (Reporting by Hyunsu Yim; Additional Reporting by Hyun Young
Yi; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
 ((Hyunsu.Yim@thomsonreuters.com;))