Art fairs in Seoul affirm the city’s status as a leading art hub despite market drop

Sales were down but spirits were high at the Kiaf and Frieze Seoul art fairs, with exhibitors pleased by young Koreans’ appetite for art

Reading Time:5 minutes

Why you can trust SCMP

This year’s Kiaf Seoul art fair in South Korea was well-attended and visitors were enthusiastic, despite the art market downturn. Photo: Kiaf Operating Committee

Payal Uttam

Published: 11:15am, 15 Sep 2024Updated: 12:00pm, 19 Sep 2024

Corrected [5:09pm, 18 Sep, 2024]

[5:09pm, 18 Sep, 2024]
Jonathan Cheung's surname was misspelled Chang in an earlier version of the story.
[11:33am, 19 Sep, 2024]
Australian gallerist Jan Murphy's name was misspelled in an earlier version of the story. Kiaf welcomed 36 new galleries to its roster of exhibitors; it cannot be established with certainty that 34 are foreign.

Two years ago there was a huge line snaking outside the entrance of the Korea International Art Fair (Kiaf) ahead of its opening day in Seoul.

“People were literally running into the fair with cash ready to buy works right away. But that changed this year,” said Eunice Jung, director of Kiaf, which closed its 23rd edition last week. “The pace has definitely become slower as collectors are becoming more serious and thoughtful.”

A cooling art market and sluggish economy may have slowed sales, but that did not dampen the mood in the Korean capital in the first week of September. Spirits were high at both Kiaf and the international art fair Frieze Seoul, held concurrently at the COEX convention centre in the Gangnam district.

Both fairs saw steady sales and attracted a sizeable number of collectors from Asia as well as the United States and Europe. Kiaf recorded 82,000 visitors during its run and Frieze Seoul clocked 70,000 visitors.

South Korean actor Park Hae-jin was among the many celebrities attending Frieze Seoul 2024. Photo: Frieze Seoul

Several K-pop celebrities, such as Joshua Hong and The8 from Seventeen, Huh Yun-jin from Le Sserafim, and Jeon Somi were also there.

“Who can resist Seoul? Between the art, food, nightlife, K-pop and K-dramas people are obsessed with, it’s a really hard week to pass,” said Hong Kong-based art adviser and collector Jonathan Cheung.