“Art is my religion. Museums are my churches and temples—sanctuaries
of the spirit, free from dogma.” Hong Gyu Shin
The KAIST Art Museum is pleased to present The Shin Collection: The Vault
of Masterpieces, an exhibition that unfolds a self-portrait of Hong Gyu
Shin, the gallerist, curator and collector, as seen through the works of art
he collected over the years.
This exhibition is curated to share Hong Gyu Shin’s aesthetic sensibility and
philosophy through the artworks. Breaking away from conventional
exhibition, the show reconstructs Shin’s New York residence and personal
archive within the Museum, offering a setting where art seamlessly blends
into the fabric of everyday life rather than remaining as objects on display.
The exhibition becomes a living archive, layered with memory, intuition,
and emotion, and invites visitors into an intimate encounter with art.
This collection, comprising forty-five major works of art curated in
harmony with the exhibition space, presents a comprehensive and global
perspective rooted in both art historical inquiry and personal intuition.
Spanning from 18th-century European painting sketches to contemporary
paintings by artists from Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Americas, the
exhibition offers a richly layered exploration of an artistic vision across
time and geography.
Highlights of the exhibition include a sketch by François Boucher, works by
Cy Twombly and Ai Weiwei, and a rare painting by Congo, the Chimpanzee
once owned by Salvador Dali and Pablo Picasso, as an evocative tribute to
non-human creativity. At the heart of the collection stands Head of a
Peasant (1885), a profound work from Vincent van Gogh’s mature period,
offering a powerful glimpse into the artist’s evolving vision and emotional
depth.
Ultimately, The Vault of Masterpieces is more than a collection—it explores
the evolving boundaries between art and life in our contemporary world,
creating a space of resonance and reflection at their intersection. It invites
us to consider what art has meant to one individual, while prompting
deeper contemplation into how we, too, live alongside art, reframing the
everyday as something rich with aesthetic and emotional significance.