‘Korean Treasures’ Offers Insight Into A Rich Artistic Heritage

Like k-pop? Korean dramas or films? Popular Korean media often references the nation’s rich artistic and cultural heritage which is why exploring this legacy only enhances the appreciation of today’s k-media. Take the Netflix hit, K-Pop Demon Hunters. Viewers may have wondered about the “Sun, Moon And Five Peaks” screen shown in the royal court during Jinu’s origin story. That iconic screen has been replicated in Korean dramas and films. But what does it mean? What’s the context? Visitors can now view the original screen, which symbolizes the king and queen, at a Washington D.C. museum. The six-panel screen is part of the “Korean Treasures: Collected, Cherished Shared” collection currently on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art.

“The exhibition wasn’t conceived in response to the growing popularity of Korean pop culture though the broader rise of k-culture provides a timely, welcoming context,” said Carol Huh, the museum’s assistant curator for contemporary art. “Traditional Korean art and culture have reached many people through popular films, dramas, and music; we hope this exhibition deepens that curiosity—especially for audiences unfamiliar with Korean art—by linking today’s enthusiasm to its historical roots.”

Spanning 1,500 years of art, the exhibit features ancient Buddhist sculptures, ceramics, paintings, furnishings and modern twentieth century masterpieces. Co-organized with the National Museum of Korea and the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Korea, the exhibit was inspired by the 2021 donation of 23,000 artworks to the Korean nation by the family of Lee Kun-hee (1942–2020), the former chairman of Samsung Group.

“The gift was unprecedented in both scale and significance,” said Sunwoo Hwang, the museum’s curator of Korean Art and Culture. “Spanning pre-historic to contemporary times and comprising rare books, as well as all major media explored by Korea’s artists and artisans.”

“Korean Treasures” is the first U.S. exhibit of significant works from the collection.

“It features 14 designated National Treasures and 46 Treasures,” said Hwang. “Although called the Lee Kun-hee Collection, the holdings result from over seventy years of generational collecting begun by Samsung founder Lee Byung-chul and continued by his son, Lee Kun-hee and his wife, Madam Hong Ra-hee.”

The collection is arranged thematically across 10 galleries. The exhibit opens and closes with a reflection on the practice of collecting in Korea, drawing inspiration from the tradition of chaekgado—vibrant painted screens depicting scholarly books and treasured objects. These galleries illustrate how historical collectors acquired, appreciated and displayed their possessions, evoking parallels to cabinets of curiosity. Among the works is a painted 19th-century chaekgado featuring rare books, scholarly implements, antiques and curiosities imported from China.

“In close collaboration with curators at the National Museum of Korea and the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, we assembled works that (1) reflect the breadth of the gift across media and periods, (2) highlight exceptional quality and art-historical importance, and (3) tell a clear story for U.S. audiences about Korea’s artistic continuity and innovation,” said Keith Wilson, the museum’s curator of Chinese art.

Highlights include Sarangbang: Scholars at Home. Spanning centuries of cultural evolution, several sections center on the Joseon Dynasty (1392‒1910). A key setting for Neo-Confucian practice during this period was the sarangbang, or scholar’s study. Modest well-crafted furnishings are on view alongside writing tools, portraits of accomplished scholar-officials and accounts of virtuous men and women, reflecting the tastes and morals of Korea’s scholarly elites.

Art at the Joseon Court focuses on the ideals, aesthetics and patronage systems of the Joseon court and how they played a pivotal role in shaping Korean culture. Early royal palaces such as Gyeongbokgung (built in 1395) and Changdeokgung (started in 1404) are depicted in artworks featured in this gallery. Their refined courtly culture is evident in a display of furniture, ceramics, ceremonial objects and paintings.

Buddhism and its legacy immerses visitors in 1,500 years of Buddhist art. This gallery explores how Buddhism endured in Korea after arriving from China. Sacred texts and ritual objects provide a holistic understanding of Buddhist devotional practice, while later Joseon-era altar paintings depict events in the Buddha’s life and the array of Buddhist deities worshipped in Korea.

Transcending tradition: By the 20th century, traditional modes of appreciating art had begun to shift. Pioneering artists such as Lee San-beom (1897–1972), Park Saeng-kwang (1904–1985) and Lee Ung-no (1904–1989) sought new visual languages by merging Western and Korean concepts and subject matter. By the 1950s, many artists’ radical approaches began to redefine Korean painting in a modernizing world.

“We hope that audiences, particularly those who are beginning to take an interest in Korean popular culture, may find in this exhibition an opportunity to explore its historical origins and enduring vitality, thus bridging past and present,” said You Hong June, president of the National Museum of Korea.”

“Korean Treasures: Collected, Cherished, Shared” can be seen through Feb. 1, 2026. Following its time in Washington D.C., the collection will travel to the Art Institute of Chicago where it will be on view from March 7 through July 5.