MMCA needs to prepare for next big steps as global visitors flock, experts say

State-run museum draws record-breaking international patrons in 2024

By Park Han-sol

The year 2024 was a banner year for the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA), as the number of its international visitors soared to an all-time high.

The state-run museum, which operates four venues across Korea — the main Seoul branch, Deoksugung inside the royal palace, Gwacheon in Gyeonggi Province and Cheongju in North Chungcheong Province — drew over 220,000 visitors from abroad last year, marking a 36 percent jump from prepandemic levels in 2019.

More than half of the international audience hailed from the United States and Europe, followed by travelers from China, Japan and Southeast Asia.

With this, the MMCA has officially surpassed the milestone of 1 million foreign visitors since the opening of its Seoul branch in 2013.

One of the most visible catalysts behind the museum’s record global attendance is the impact of Frieze Seoul and Seoul Art Week, according to art critic Yoon Jin-sup.

The art fair, launched in September 2022, has quickly become a pivotal congregation point for institutional representatives, collectors and art enthusiasts from around the world, many of whom previously lacked sufficient incentive to travel to Seoul. During their stay, these visitors often venture beyond the immediate vicinity of Frieze to explore other neighborhoods with clusters of museums and commercial galleries — including Samcheong-dong in central Seoul, home to the MMCA’s main branch, Yoon explained.

Kim Sung Woo, a curator and writer who co-directed the 2018 Gwangju Biennale, highlighted the synergy between Frieze Seoul’s commercial impact and the coordinated programming of public institutions during Seoul Art Week. He noted that the art fair’s financial clout and promotional reach, coupled with museum and gallery exhibitions, offer the art professionals a highly concentrated cultural experience.

“These individuals then produce high-quality writings — articles and publications — that spotlight Korea’s current contemporary art scene,” he told The Korea Times. “This, in turn, generates a wealth of secondary materials in different languages, further amplifying global interest in Korean art.”

That said, Kim cautioned against attributing the MMCA’s surge in international audience solely to Frieze Seoul or the September art boom.

“We must keep in mind that most overseas visitors are not art professionals but members of the general public,” he said. “The broader reason for this influx therefore lies beyond the art world — it’s Korea’s wide-ranging cultural exports, including films, dramas and music, which hold immense global influence. These cultural touchpoints are what draws tourists here in the first place, and museums like the MMCA become natural extensions of their journey.”

What's next?

Having reached a critical milestone in attracting global attention, how should the MMCA chart its next steps to solidify its standing in the broader art world?

One key objective is to effectively leverage its international network to strengthen its role as a bridge between Korean contemporary art and the global art scene — an area where the institution still falls short, according to Kim.

“For instance, its Korea Artist Prize shouldn’t simply end with the presentation of an award,” the curator noted. “A national institution’s function is to strategically plan how to promote and position these selected creatives within the international cultural dialogue in meaningful ways.”

He emphasized the importance of fostering concrete exchanges with overseas art professionals who visit during events like Frieze Seoul. By facilitating tangible dialogues, the museum can craft compelling narratives around Korean artists and partner with international organizations to present their work abroad in more contextualized and impactful ways.

Another pressing task is constructing a cohesive lineage for Korean contemporary art. This would allow a clearer understanding of each artist’s place within the domestic scene and their connections to broader historical and cultural narratives. While modern movements like “dansaekhwa” (Korean monochrome painting) and “Minjung Art” have been better documented, the genealogy of today’s creators remains underdeveloped, Kim noted.

Addressing this gap requires conducting focused academic research, as well as recalibrating the museum’s collection strategy to better trace Korea’s artistic evolution.

“If the institution acquires iconic pieces from a celebrated period in a prominent artist’s career, it should also collect their earlier and later works to establish a more comprehensive and contextualized lineage.”

Ultimately, the MMCA’s role must extend beyond staging exhibitions as isolated, one-off events, according to Kim. By realigning its programming and collection efforts, the museum should position itself as a key player in shaping the narrative of Korean contemporary art on the world stage, offering audiences a more nuanced understanding of how the country’s art intersects with both local traditions and global trends.