Beneath David Chipperfield's Seoul Headquarters

At a Glance

Amorepacific Museum of Art (APMA) sits one floor below the cosmetics group's David Chipperfield-designed headquarters on Hangang Boulevard in Seoul. Opened in June 2018 with the new building, it pairs the founder Suh Sung-whan-era antique Korean collection with substantial 20th–21st-century holdings.

Chipperfield Above, Museum Below

The white-cube headquarters is generally closed to the public, but the basement museum, ground-floor lounge, café, and bookshop are open. Skylights and stone passages stop the basement from feeling buried.

Highlights

• Korean antiques—roughly 4,000 ceramics, metalwork, and decorative pieces, including blue-and-white inlay celadon vases.
• Mark Rothko's late grey-pearl works on long-term display.
• Anselm Kiefer, Basquiat, Rauschenberg in rotating exhibitions.
• Dansaekhwa core—Lee Ufan, Park Seo-bo, Chung Sang-hwa.
• Two or three major curated exhibitions a year, including international solos by Olafur Eliasson and Rafael Lozano-Hemmer.

Tips

One minute from Sinyongsan (Lines 1/4). Tickets ₩15,000–20,000 depending on the show. Plan 1.5–2 hours. Pair with the National Museum of Korea or War Memorial across the avenue. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.