Chaekgado: Scholar’s Accoutrements in a Bookcase
Joseon dynasty, 19th century
© National Museum of Korea |
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art presents Korean Treasures: Collected, Cherished, Shared, the first U.S. exhibition of significant works from the renowned Lee Kun-Hee Collection. On view through February 1, 2026, Korean Treasures features over 200 works, including a dozen National Treasures designated by the Korean government. The largest and most comprehensive presentation of Korean art ever mounted at the National Museum of Asian Art, the exhibition spans 1,500 years—from ancient Buddhist sculptures and ceramics to paintings, furnishings and modern masterpieces of the 20th century.
Donated to the Republic of Korea in 2021 by the family of the late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-Hee, the collection reflects more than 70 years of generational collecting and comprises more than 23,000 works, a testament to a decades-long commitment to preserving and sharing Korea’s artistic legacy and cultural heritage. Korean Treasures presents a remarkable selection from the collection to American audiences for the first time, alongside additional loans from the Leeum Museum of Art in Seoul, Korea, shown exclusively in Washington, D.C.
In a conversation with The Korea Society, three curators from the National Museum of Asian Art–Carol Huh, J. Keith Wilson, and Sunwoo Hwang–explore the depth and diversity of Korean art and reflect on the practice of collecting in Korea.
Korean Treasures: Collected, Cherished, Shared | The Curatorial Roundtable
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 | 6 PM (EST)
The Korea Society
350 Madison Avenue, 24th Floor
New York, NY 10017
About the Speakers:
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Carol Huh, the Associate Curator of Contemporary Asian Art, became the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art’s first curator of contemporary art in 2007. As the curator of contemporary art at the National Museum of Asian Art, Carol Huh focuses on current artistic production related to Asia and the Asian diaspora through exhibitions, acquisitions, and public programs. She spearheaded projects such as the groundbreaking series of contemporary art installations in the Sackler Gallery, and organized Moving Perspectives, the museum’s first series of exhibitions focusing on video art from Asia. Huh is a founding member of the Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship Committee and a member of the Smithsonian Networks Review Committee. She completed her undergraduate and graduate studies at Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
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A specialist in Chinese antiquities, J. Keith Wilson received his BA in Chinese Studies from Williams College and completed his PhD coursework at Princeton University after receiving MAs in Chinese art and archaeology from both the University of Michigan and Princeton. He was also a research fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia at the University of Tokyo. He was appointed curator at the Cleveland Museum of Art and chief curator of Asian art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art before joining the staff of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art.
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Sunwoo Hwang, Korea Foundation Assistant Curator of Korean Art and Culture, became the first curator of Korean art at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art in 2024. Her research interests focus on Korean and Chinese Buddhist art, with a particular emphasis on medieval Buddhist wall paintings and their iconographic significance. Hwang holds an MA in Humanities from the University of Chicago and a PhD in Art History from Dongguk University in South Korea.
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