Korean Treasures: Collected, Cherished, Shared | The Curatorial Roundtable

December 2, 2025 - The Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art presents Korean Treasures: Collected, Cherished, Shared, the first U.S. exhibition of significant works from the renowned Lee Kun-Hee Collection. On view through February 1, 2026, Korean Treasures features over 200 works, including a dozen National Treasures designated by the Korean government. The largest and most comprehensive presentation of Korean art ever mounted at the National Museum of Asian Art, the exhibition spans 1,500 years—from ancient Buddhist sculptures and ceramics to paintings, furnishings and modern masterpieces of the 20th century.

Donated to the Republic of Korea in 2021 by the family of the late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-Hee, the collection reflects more than 70 years of generational collecting and comprises more than 23,000 works, a testament to a decades-long commitment to preserving and sharing Korea's artistic legacy and cultural heritage. Korean Treasures presents a remarkable selection from the collection to American audiences for the first time, alongside additional loans from the Leeum Museum of Art in Seoul, Korea, shown exclusively in Washington, D.C.

In a conversation with The Korea Society, three curators from the National Museum of Asian Art–Carol Huh, J. Keith Wilson, and Sunwoo Hwang–explore the depth and diversity of Korean art and reflect on the practice of collecting in Korea.

For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/arts-culture/gallery-talks/2081-korean-treasures-collected-cherished-shared-the-curatorial-roundtable