Companies get creative to impress affluent art fans visiting Seoul

Korean companies are welcoming avid art fans with open arms as they descend on Seoul for a series of art fairs this week. Frieze Seoul and Kiaf Seoul kicks off together at Coex in southern Seoul on Wednesday, with Frieze running through to...

People visit the ″Art in LotteMart″ art exhibition held at a Lotte Mart in Songpa District, southern Seoul, on Monday. [YONHAP]

Korean companies are welcoming avid art fans with open arms as they descend on Seoul for a series of art fairs this week.

Frieze Seoul and Kiaf Seoul kicks off together at Coex in southern Seoul on Wednesday, with Frieze running through to Saturday and Kiaf through to Sunday. Frieze is one of the world’s largest contemporary art fairs, alongside Art Basel and FIAC, developed by the founders of a magazine under the same name. Frieze is being held in Seoul for the second consecutive year.

Kiaf, or Korean International Art Fair, is the country’s first and leading international art fair.

Some 10,000 art fans with deep pockets, including a real estate tycoon family from Hong Kong, are expected to visit Seoul for the fairs.

A special Kiaf exhibition promoting the Kiaf Seoul art fair is held at Incheon International Airport on Aug. 28. [NEWS1]

“Businesses map out anticipated courses of transit in advance for the collectors who are expected to visit top-rated cafes, restaurants and clubs in Seongsu-dong in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul, and Garosu-gil in Gangnam District, southern Seoul,” said an industry source.

Shinsegae Department Store, an official sponsor of Frieze Seoul, decorated its lounge in Coex with designs implementing modern interpretations of Korea’s beauty as it hosts guests at the venue.

Shinsegae’s fashion retail platform W Concept will open its own lounge at Coex and exhibit collaboration projects with local and overseas artists.

Lotte Shopping on Monday opened an art exhibition titled “Art in LotteMart” at a Lotte Mart store in Songpa District, southern Seoul, near Coex. The exhibition runs through Saturday and displays 300 art pieces made by 100 artists.

A promotion video for Frieze Seoul 2023 is displayed at an electroinc signboard in front of Coex, southern Seoul, on Aug. 22. [NEWS1]

LG Electronics is another company eyeing the big players’ visit. It will showcase the works of late artist Kim Whan-ki on its OLED (organic light-emitting diode) panels.

“The OLED TV is a perfect medium to display Kim’s artworks portraying stars emitting light in space with high contrast ratio and wide viewing angles,” said an LG Electronics spokesperson.

Hotel package deals, including admission tickets to Frieze, are nearly sold out. Promotional packages by Lotte Hotels & Resort consisting of lodging at Signiel Seoul in Jamsil, Songpa District, and a VIP ticket to Frieze were in high demand. A few sets of admissions for Thursday afternoon remain in stock.

At Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP), in Jung District, central Seoul, the Seoul Fashion Week kicked off Tuesday and will run through Saturday to exhibit 2024 S/S collections.

Seoul Fashion Week 2023 was held a month earlier than usual, ahead of the four major fashion weeks in New York, Paris, Milan and London, to offer buyers an early glimpse of the upcoming fashion trend.

Models strut along a runway at the Seoul Fashion Week held at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Jung District, central Seoul, on Tuesday. [NEWS1]

The fashion week's date was set to run alongside Frieze and Kiaf to bring fine art and fashion together, according to a Seoul city government official.

Hyundai Department Store will run nine runway programs at the fashion show in collaboration with local designer brands and artists to promote Seoul as a hub for fashion and art.

A trade show running in tandem with the Seoul Fashion Week at DDP hosts 94 fashion companies, 127 buyers from 27 countries and local fashion retail and investment companies at the location.

Rental car companies are also reaping fruits from the art fairs. The reservation rate for rental services at Seoul Station during the fair dates rose 20 percent on year, according to Lotte Rental.

“Rental demand rose from a series of international events held in Seoul and on visits by tourists from Singapore and Southeast Asian countries,” said a Lotte Rental official.

BY KIM MIN-SANG [sohn.dongjoo@joongang.co.kr]