For its 16th edition, the KIAF come back was much awaited by the art society. From its establishment in 2002, the fair has significantly grown, with 174 Korean and international galleries exposing and more than 63,000 visitors coming to discover all the artists.
The attention that it was given, by the international art world, to this art fair is even more present this year because of the participation of Sylvain and Dominique Levy as a part of the organization committee. But it’s not the only reason which gathers attention for this fair. Indeed, The KIAF has an awe-inspiring program of conferences about different art topics as “What is Minimalism Now?” or “Way of Collecting Art Today” with Han Nefkens, Frank Yang, and Ramòn Sauma & Cristián Animate as speakers.
This year, as every year, the KIAF have presented to the public an impressive special exhibition, co-operated with Gwangju Biennale, “ARTIST PROJECT”, which showcased works by four artists participating in this year’s Biennale.
Featuring installation artworks by Lais Myrrha (Brazil), Mark Salvatus (Philippines), Kim Ayoung (Korea), and Min Sung-hong (Korea) the special exhibition showcase artwork which questions individuality concept and the socio-political environment that surrounds us in our days.
In fact, many artists and galleries responded to the call, included the talented Kim Jae-Yong, an artist which really caught the attention of the visiting audience of the exhibition with her “Donuts Madness” artwork, presented at gallery Yeh booth.
A gleaming HAN Young Wook mesmerized people who walked into Bhak gallery. Indeed, the artist well known for his realistic and emotional painting has presented a painting that can’t be forgotten. His portrait of the three boys is hypnotic, our eyes are caught by the details of the figure, but more than that they are caught by the emotion that is coming out from the representation. We can see that more than just painting a portrait, Han Young Wook, wanted to share the captured emotion that he witnessed with the viewer.
Even if it attracts the most famous galleries of the world, the KIAF remains an art fair promoting Korean contemporary art. In fact, 114 out of the 174 galleries where Korean galleries. It’s a choice made by the KIAF organizers, in fact, they consciously limited outside participation to 50 slots and kept the focus on the Korean art scene.
This art fair offers a global visualization of Korean culture and art scene. The viewers have the chance to discover new artists and at the same time admire the artwork of the well-known ones. The KIAF 2018 highlights the growing interest which has the world towards Korean art and culture. The fair is also a market where galleries could steer future plans towards. Indeed, the number speaks for itself, the fair has recorded the value of art sales as approximately 25 million USD for this year. But more than that The KIAF shows and cultivates the important presence of Seoul in the art world cities.
