Art and Seoul: Sotheby’s Asia on the rise of the South Korean market

Alez Branczik and Nick Buckley Wood of Sotheby’s Asia talk to Prestige about the rise of the South Korean market and an exhibition of work by the artists Banksy and Keith Haring, currently on show at the Paradise City resort in Incheon.

In Asia’s rapidly growing and evolving art market, South Korea and its capital, Seoul, are currently enjoying a “moment”. Just last month, artists, collectors and professionals from around the world descended upon the city for Kiaf Seoul and Frieze Seoul art fairs, while at the same time Sotheby’s opened its first office there.

Coinciding with those three events, Sotheby’s and the Paradise City integrated luxury resort in Incheon, famed for its design focus, galleries and an incredible collection of contemporary art, opened the exhibition Love in Paradise, featuring 32 works by the artists Banksy and Keith Haring, which is open to the public until November 5. On the exhibition’s opening day, Sotheby’s Asia chairman of modern and contemporary art, Alex Branczik, and director of private sales, Nick Buckley Wood, sat down with Prestige to talk about the collaboration with Paradise City, trends in the art scenes in both South Korea and Asia, and how to take your first steps towards becoming a collector.

We’re here in Korea, where there’s an increasing buzz around the art market. How does Sotheby’s regard the potential in the Korean market, and are you boosting your presence here?
Alex Branczik: We’re imminently opening a new headquarters here in Seoul, which is part of a larger strategy for Sotheby’s in Asia to increase and grow our footprint here, to connect with our clients and the art-market professionals on their own doorstep in cities around the region. It’s not only in Seoul: earlier this year we opened
a new office in Shanghai, with an education and exhibition space, as well as staging auctions [around the region] – we had our second this year in Singapore – and a non-selling exhibition in Vietnam.

How did this collaboration with Paradise City come about? Do you regard the resort as a natural partner for Sotheby’s, and will this be an ongoing partnership?
Nick Buckley Wood: This is our first collaboration with Paradise and it’s also our first major project in Korea, which also coincides with our office opening in Seoul. It was a natural choice, because Paradise is known for its art collection; they have this great art space here where they’ve hosted many exhibitions. They’re also very much in touch with the entertainment industry and youth culture. So it’s a very natural collaboration, and hopefully we can collaborate on more in the future.
AB: It’s my first time here, as I’m relatively new to the region. The space is incredible
– you only need to walk around the hotel and casino to see the incredible artworks on public display, which work very well with the environment. The Kusama Pumpkin right in the middle of the atrium is incredible. Clearly for us to be associated with such a great collection represents an amazing partnership.

Tell us more about the Banksy and Keith Haring exhibition. Is this a selling exhibition and can you pick out for us one or two highlights?
NBW: It’s a non-selling exhibition, and one of the highlights of the show is the shredded Banksy, which we’ve loaned for the exhibition along with 38 other pieces by Banksy and Keith Haring. It’s the first time the two artists have been shown in the same place and the first time most of the have been seen in Korea. It’s also a free exhibition: people can reserve online and then come, which is a great message. Also, as these two artists were originally street and performance artists, they’d have wanted the exhibition to be open to everyone.
It’s an amazing marketing opportunity for both Sotheby’s and Paradise. We had a press preview with about 150 media the other day, so there’s been a huge amount of interest in the exhibition. It’s also the first post- pandemic exhibition for Paradise, and they wanted to make a big splash.