Seongbuk-gu to Host First "Seongbuk Art Week" Through Nov. 1, With Contemporary Art at 11 Sites
Special exhibitions include the father-and-son show by Seo Se-ok and Suh Do-ho, among others.
Seongbuk-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Lee Seungro), announced on the 16th that it will hold the first "2026 Seongbuk Art Week" across the district for 13 days, from October 20 to November 1. The art festival will connect Seongbuk's historic and cultural art spaces with contemporary art, with the aim of expanding the entire district into one open-air museum and building a sustainable local arts ecosystem.
The inaugural event's theme is "Home: A Continuous Breath." It conveys the idea of breathing new artistic life into the "homes" in Seongbuk where master artists lived and worked.
The centerpiece of the event is a series of site-specific exhibitions at 11 locally preserved sites. Works will be installed at Hanyangdoseong (Jeong Hyeon), Shimwoojang (Lee Woosung), Choi Sun-woo's Old House (Choi Insoo), Lee Jong-seok's Villa (Kim Donghae), Seonjamdanji (Shin Yeseon), Samcheonggak (Yoo Na-eul), and Kwon Jinkyu Atelier (Kim Jungeun, Seo Yeseok, Jeon Jiin, and Heo Nayoung), among other locations. Artist Lee Yeonsook will present works at the former sites of Seungseolam, Jang Seung-eop's house, and the Seongbuk Painting Research Center, while artist Han Seongpil will present work at Songseokjeong, which is undergoing restoration.
Special exhibitions are also planned. At the main building of Seongbuk Museum of Art, "Seo Se-ok and Suh Do-ho: Caress"—the first father-and-son exhibition featuring painter Seo Se-ok, who built a traditional Korean house in Seongbuk-dong, and his son, artist Suh Do-ho—will run from October 20 to December 20. Korea University Museum will host "Where Did We Come From, and Where Are We Going?" to mark the 100th anniversary of painter Byun Si-ji's birth. Twenty-two local art institutions, including Gansong Art Museum and the Korea Furniture Museum, will also take part in collaborative exhibitions.
Side events include the second Seongbuk Museum Forum, the first Seongbuk Art Fair, Seongbuk art tours, tours of the Korea Furniture Museum, and talks at Seongbuk art bookstores. From October 20 to 24, the district will operate shuttle buses departing from Hansung University Station and serving major exhibition venues. "Seongbuk Art Week Around," featuring local businesses offering special desserts and brunch, will also take place.
"Seongbuk is the cradle of Korean culture and the arts, where countless artists have lived and created brilliant works over many years," said District Mayor Lee Seungro. "We will ensure this event does not remain a one-off, but instead strengthen ties among spaces, institutions, and artists and develop it into a sustainable, world-class art festival that represents Seongbuk."
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Event schedules and reservations for advance programs are available on the Seongbuk Art Week website (www.sbartweek.com).
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