Opera Gallery marks anniversary, greets new home

Marking the fifth anniversary of its opening, Opera Gallery Seoul is holding a special exhibition at its new location from Friday to Dec. 23.

Opera Gallery Seoul, part of the world’s leading contemporary art gallery which has 11 branches worldwide, recently moved from a gallery building in Cheongdam-dong to a more spacious site on Dosan Boulevard.

Some 70 paintings and 30 sculptures from Opera Gallery Seoul’s collection, including works by 10 well-known artists such Damien Hirst, Jean Francois Larrieu and Lita Cabellut, are on display.

Some of the highlights are Damien Hirst’s “Birthday Card,” priced at more than 1 billion won ($924,000); Marc Quinn’s three-meter flower sculpture “Archaelogy of Desire” and the gallery’s iconic sculpture Robert Indiana’s “Nine.” 

Other works include Jean Franois Larrieu’s colorful painting of a tree “Arbre de Vie Red,” Mr. Branwash’s “Einstein” print, Lita Cabellut’s “Marilyn” portrait and Antonio Segui’s “Technicolor,” which shows Latin American characteristics in its lively colors and interesting composition.

Curators will offer guided tours to visitors during the special exhibition period, in keeping to the vision of Kwon Gee-chan, chairman of Opera Gallery Seoul and CEO of Wearfun International Co.

“My goal is to make people’s lives happier with art. To pursue my vision, we decided to move to a more spacious site so that more people can visit our gallery,” said Kwon.

“I hope people get comfort from viewing the artworks as well,” Kwon added.

Kwon said the gallery would strengthen its art activities for children in partnership with Child Fund, a nonprofit group that promotes children’s welfare.

“We’ve been doing it for years, but we plan to hold more programs for children such as supplying painting tools for school children and offering guided tours to children from rural areas,” said Kwon.

The exhibition is open from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. at Opera Gallery Seoul on Dosan Boulevard, Gangnam, Seoul.

For more information, call (02) 3446-0070.

By Lee Woo-young  (wylee@heraldcorp.com)