SEOUL, October 01 (AJP) - A selection from the late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee's vast art collection has gone on display at the British Museum, marking the collection's first European exhibition following shows in Washington and Chicago.
The exhibition, titled "Korea," opened Wednesday in London and runs through Jan. 31, bringing together 100 works spanning more than 2,000 years of Korean art. It is the British Museum's first major special presentation of Korean art in more than four decades.
The exhibition draws from more than 23,000 works donated by Lee's family to South Korean institutions in 2021 following his death. It is jointly organized by the British Museum, the National Museum of Korea and the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea.
Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Jay Y. Lee attended a gala marking the opening Tuesday alongside members of the Samsung family, including Hong Ra-hee, director emerita of the Leeum Museum of Art; Hotel Shilla President Lee Boo-jin; and Samsung C&T President Lee Seo-hyun.
"For generations, my family has held a guiding principle that art and culture should be preserved and shared," Lee said.
"I hope this exhibition offers a gateway into Korean culture, spanning two thousand years of creativity and heritage, and that it will let everyone see Korea a little differently — for its beauty, its depth and its resilience."
Britain's Princess Anne also attended a reception ahead of the gala. The event brought together about 240 guests from government, business, academia and the arts, including executives from major European semiconductor companies such as ASML, Merck, ZEISS and imec.
The London exhibition features 10 National Treasures and 13 Treasures of Korea, with more than 20 works being shown internationally for the first time. They include ancient Korean artifacts as well as modern works by artists including Nam June Paik and Lee Jung-seop.
The collection's international tour began at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art in Washington in November 2025, where Samsung said it attracted about 80,000 visitors. Its subsequent exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago drew about 115,000 visitors.
AJP Takeaways
- The Lee Kun-hee Collection opened its first European exhibition at the British Museum, following shows in Washington and Chicago.
- The London show features 100 works, including 10 National Treasures and 13 Treasures, and runs through Jan. 31.
- Samsung Chairman Jay Y. Lee and other members of the Lee family attended the opening gala, along with Princess Anne and European business and cultural leaders.
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