In June 2025, the National Museum of Korea will hold the special exhibition Art of Early Joseon.
This exhibition covers 200 years of art and culture from the portion of the Joseon Dynasty spanning from its founding in 1392 to the Japanese Invasions of Korea in 1592. During this time, the young dynasty worked to enrich society and its culture in the new city of Hanyang (today’s Seoul) based on governance assisted by the emerging sadaebu (scholar-officials) ruling group.
Internally, the combination of Confucian ideology with the legacy of the preceding Goryeo Dynasty led to a blossoming of art and literature centered on the royal family and sadaebu. The maturation of technologies and improvement of the governance system spurred the development of handicrafts. Externally, the Joseon Dynasty fostered mutually influential relationships with the Ming Dynasty in China and Muromachi shogunate in Japan and it engaged in international cultural exchanges. This resulted in the development of a variety of art forms.
This exhibition introduces a wide range of visual materials from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, including ceramics, secular paintings, Buddhist paintings, Buddhist sculptures, books, and printing type. These items will allow visitors to explore the diversity, aesthetic and technical achievements, and sophisticated tastes observed in the art of the early Joseon period when the new dynasty was thriving.
The year 2025 marks the eightieth anniversary of Korea’s independence from Japan, the sixtieth anniversary of diplomatic normalization between South Korea and Japan, and the twentieth anniversary of the National Museum of Korea’s relocation to Yongsan. In this memorable year, this exhibition offers an opportunity to contemplate the ideals of the upcoming era by looking back on the cultural heights achieved in the first centuries of the Joseon Dynasty.
- Exhibition Period: June 10 (Tue), 2025–August 31 (Sun), 2025
- Exhibition Place: Special Exhibition Gallery of the National Museum of Korea
- Displayed Items: Approximately 120 items, including Eight Views of the Four Seasons by Ahn Gyeon, Poems Exchanged between the Ming Envoy and Joseon Officials, and Bhaishajyaguru Buddha Commissioned by Queen Munjeong