As South Korea grapples with its future and identity following the failed imposition of martial law by its conservative president Yoon Suk-Yeol, it will give queer inclusion a powerful embrace next year.
The fourth edition of the Sunpride Foundation’s exhibition series by and about Asia’s LGBTQ+ community will be held in the first quarter of 2026 at Seoul non-profit Art Sonje Center, giving voice to this pivotal time for queer visibility in South Korea.
The country’s younger generation has become more accepting of gay rights overall, but the ruling People Power Party (PPP) has leaned heavily into homophobic rhetoric to court the country’s Christian right wing. PPP’s potential leaders after President Yoon—now impeached and detained for attempted insurrection—include Seoul mayor Oh Se-hoon. Oh, amidst his enthusiasm for arts events like Frieze Seoul, has publicly said he “personally can’t agree with homosexuality” and his office has thrown a series of obstacles at Seoul’s Pride festival. Another party leader, Daegu mayor Hong Joon-pyo, in 2023 dispatched 450 civil servants to protest against and block participants in that city’s authorised Queer Culture Festival.
“Seoul is a dynamic city, rich in character and with a thriving arts community, while Art Sonje Center is an institution I respect very much—committed in promoting innovative artistic practices and fostering cultural dialogue,” said Patrick Sun, the founder and executive director of Sunpride Foundation, in a statement today. ”We are delighted to have the opportunity to champion the work of LGBTQ+ artists and allies within this context.”
The project will be overseen by Sunjung Kim, the artistic director of Art Sonje Center. “We deeply admire [Sunpride’s] mission of championing the marginalised voices of the LGBTQ+ artistic community within the Asia-Pacific [region], successfully cultivated by Patrick Sun over the years,” Kim added. “Together, in collaboration with the Sunpride Foundation, we are excited to present a show that engages with the contemporary Korean queer art scene alongside Asia-Pacific artists, fostering meaningful dialogue and visibility for these vital artistic voices.”
Sunpride Foundation staged its first exhibition Spectrosynthesis—Asian LGBTQ Issues and Art Now in 2017 in Taiwan at MoCA Taipei, months after its 2017 court ruling made it the first territory in Asia to recognise marriage equality.
Its second, Spectrosynthesis II—Exposure of Tolerance in 2019 at Thailand’s Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, preceded that country’s 2024 law allowing same-sex marriage. In December 2022 it opened the Myth Makers—Spectrosynthesis III at the Hong Kong institution Tai Kwun. Further details of the Seoul show will be announced during Art Basel in Hong Kong next month.
