MMCA Names Kim Sung-hee as Subsequent Director

Date:

Share post:


The Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism on September 14 announced that Kim Sung-hee will be the next director of South Korea’s National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA). Kim will step into her new role on September 18. She takes over from MMCA’s planning and general management chief Park Jong-dal, who has served as interim director since late April, when Youn Bum-mo departed the post twenty-two months before his contract expired. Youn, who assumed the role of director in 2019, had been appointed under the administration of left-leaning former president Moon Jae-in, under which he had been awarded a second term as MMCA’s leader. His resignation is widely believed to have been the result of pressure from the conservative government of president Yoon Suk-yeol, who was elected in 2022.

The MMCA comprises four venues: two in Seoul, one in Gwacheon, and a facility in Cheongju where the musuem’s collection is stored and displayed. Kim arrives to the institution from the CAN Foundation, where she was executive director. She is a cofounder of the nonprofit, which supports emerging artists in South Korea and elsewhere. Kim was additionally a professor in the curatorial studies and art management department at Hongik University, where she taught art planning. She served as artistic director of the Incheon Women Artists’ Biennale in 2007 and curated the special exhibition at the 2000 Gwangju Biennale.

Kim’s appointment followed a public call for applicants issued in May by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism. She beat out two-other shortlisted candidates, Kim Chan-dong and Shim Sang-yong. Though Youn’s tenure was set to end in February 2025, Kim will not run out his term but will instead occupy the role for a full three years.

ALL IMAGES

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

spot_img

Related articles

Leonardo’s ‘Salvator Mundi,’ Once Lost, Sold for $80 Million

Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Salvator Mundi,’ a masterpiece that has captivated the art world for centuries, took a remarkable...

The Symbolism of Love and Unity in Gustav Klimt’s “The Kiss”

“The Kiss,” painted by Gustav Klimt between 1907 and 1908, is one of the most celebrated works of...

Marisa Milan: Painting the Essence of Existence Through Color and Spirit

Marisa Milan is an international artist of Greek heritage whose work is deeply rooted in both creativity and...

Embracing the Unpredictable: The Abstract Watercolors of Annick Richard-Keller

Annick Richard-Keller’s journey in watercolor art began with an instinctive calling from her childhood. Art felt like a...