K-Pop Star RM Curates Art Exhibition At Sfmoma

(MENAFN- USA Art News) RM, the leader of K-pop group BTS, curated an exhibition titled“RM x SFMoMA: Between You and Me” at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMoMA). At a press preview last week, RM stated,“I guess this exhibition is a pretty long introduction of myself.” The museum confirmed on October 7 that membership previews were fully booked and tickets for the opening weekend had sold out, with a total of 50,000 ticket reservations already made for the show.

RM, whose real name is Kim Namjoon, has developed a reputation as a serious art collector and patron over the past several years. His interest began in 2018 after a visit to the Art Institute of Chicago, which prompted him to explore Korean artists. For the past eight years, he has dedicated time to studying art through books, galleries, museums, and fairs, primarily collecting modern and contemporary Korean art. A video tour of his Seoul home previously showcased rooms filled with art and books.

SFMoMA curator América Castillo approached RM to present an exhibition of his collection. He agreed, collaborating with the museum to select 178 works for the show. Most pieces are from his personal collection, supplemented by 36 works from SFMoMA's holdings. RM explained his selection process, asking two questions,“One was: does it move me, really?” he said during the preview.“Another was: right now in 2026, does this artist and does this work still have something to tell us?”

Although RM has no formal art history training, he views his outsider perspective as an advantage.“Sometimes, an outsider can bring a new breeze,” he noted. The exhibition is structured into eight sections, designed to reflect RM's personal connection with the artworks. Hyoeun Kim, another SFMoMA curator involved with the project, told The Art Newspaper that the structure emerged from RM's recurring interests and emotions identified through a series of conversations. She added,“Rather than fixed categories, the sections offer different ways of looking at the collection. The exhibition begins close to everyday life, gradually moves more deeply into human experience and ends in a quieter, more contemplative space.”

Kim emphasized that while Korean modern and contemporary art forms the core of RM's collection, it also includes works by artists from the United States, Europe, and other parts of Asia. The Korean art displayed spans nearly 1,500 years, featuring a sixth-century earthenware figurine, Joseon dynasty works, and pieces by major modern and contemporary Korean artists. Non-Korean artists in the exhibition include Giorgio Morandi and Roni Horn; RM famously acquired a Horn sculpture in 2021 for $1.2 million, which is now on view.

RM contributed to the exhibition's wall text and labels, with introductory texts handwritten in Korean and accompanied by English translations. These texts convey his thoughts on each section in a unique and concise style. Section titles include“Flowers bloom bloom at every boundary,”“Friendscape,” and“Home.” The“Photo Buddha (A)” section features Nam June Paik's ink sketch of his 1978“TV Buddha” assemblage, alongside Paik's later, miniaturized version,“Enlightenment Compressed” ( 1994 ), from RM's collection. In the wall text, RM writes,“Nam June Paik's TV Buddha flips 'seeing' and 'being seen,' while Kwon Jinkyu's Buddha silently watches us in return. The moment the shutter clicks, the Buddha might just be contemplating you. I wanted to leave behind that brief moment of smiling, pausing and thinking again.”

The exhibition also highlights thematic connections between RM's collection and SFMoMA's holdings. SFMoMA has collected contemporary Korean art for decades, with works by Paik and pioneering abstractionist Kim Whanki, one of RM's favorites, included from the museum's collection. Both Paik and Kim Whanki were born in Korea under Japanese rule, studied in Japan, and pursued their careers in the US. Kim noted the importance of creating a dialogue between the collections,“looking for shared questions and unexpected connections across cultures and generations. For example, Chung Sanghwa and Agnes Martin connect through repetition and time, To Sang-bong and Giorgio Morandi through their attention to everyday objects, and Yoo Youngkuk and Milton Avery through their different approaches to abstracting nature.”

RM views the exhibition as more than a personal endeavor, aiming to foster appreciation for Korean art. He stated during the preview,“Over the past century, Korea went through colonisation, war and an incredibly fast development. A lot disappeared during that time, but at the same time, some remarkable and shiny things were also created. As a young man from Korea, I've collected with the hope that I could add a slightly newer, younger, maybe better perspective and sensibility. And eventually, that led me to this exhibition.”

“RM x SFMoMA: Between You and Me” is on view at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art until February 7, 2027.

We previously reported:

BTS member RM will share his extensive personal art collection in a new exhibition at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, opening October 5.

Source: The Art Newspaper

MENAFN07102026005694012507ID1111777801