Now there’s more reason to visit the Asian Civilisations Museum right here in Singapore. It’s Joseon Korea – an exhibition of Korean treasures which are being exhibited in Southeast Asia for the first time. Singaporeans and PR pay S$10 for entry while kids and seniors enter for free. Tourists are charged S$15 per person or S$45 for a family of five. And you get to see the permanent galleries at the ACM as well.
Joseon Korea: Court Treasures and City Life gives you an insight into 500 years of Korea’s last dynasty. Over 150 artefacts and treasures from the National Museum of Korea and National Palace Museum of Korea are on display till 23 July 2017. There are six sections in the exhibition.
Depart the Goryeo Kingdom with an introduction of the transition between two dynasties with key episodes and figures such as King Taejo of Joseon. The section on Royal authority and court culture lets you in on life inside the royal palace, the roles and expectations of the king and queen, its ceremonies, costumes, food and music. The yangban looks at the elite and aristocratic class in Joseon and their adherence to Confucian ideals and hierarchical values. Nature in Korean Art features Joseon artists’ work including traditional buncheong stoneware, popular during the first two centuries of the Joseon dynasty. Sacred art and religious traditions provide insight to the influence of Confucianism and Buddhism in Joseon ritual life. Streets of Hanyang: Everyday life of the people is depicted through genre paintings, a major form of Korean art that flourished in the 18th century.
Award winning artist Ran Hwang’s largest single mixed-media installation to date is also a feature at the ACM. Becoming Again: Coming Together is a five-part installation located at the ACM’s Learning Gallery. Three newly-commissioned site-specific works are featured here including a seven-metre wide pins-and-thread mural of a pair of phoenixes as well as a 21-plexiglass panel video installation accompanied by traditional music performed with Joseon-era instruments.
