Hotel, Falling into Art

Hotel Industry, Art Exhibition Space Reborn
Seoul Parnas 9 Artists 27 Works
Signiel Busan Hosts Art Fair
Differentiated Attractions, Encouraging Customer Visits

'True Luxury with Art' exhibition at InterContinental Seoul Parnas Hotel.

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jin-young] The hotel industry is being reborn as cultural spaces that showcase art exhibitions beyond just simple lodging places.

According to the industry on the 2nd, COEX InterContinental Seoul Parnas is launching the ‘True Luxury with Art Project.’ In collaboration with Start Art Korea, the hotel is holding an exhibition in the lobby on the first floor and serving as the official sponsor of the art fair. The hotel lobby, which originally housed sofas and other furniture, has been transformed to display 27 works by 9 artists representing Korean art, including the renowned painter Kim Chang-yeol.

This combination of hotels and the art industry continues to grow. Signiel Busan Hotel held the ‘Lotte Art Fair Busan 2022’ exhibition from the 10th to the 14th of last month. Twelve famous galleries from home and abroad, along with more than 30 lifestyle and design brands, participated. All 500 VIP tickets were sold out even before the art fair’s opening, and thousands of visitors came to the hotel during the fair, concluding the exhibition successfully.

In the case of Paradise City, it gained popularity by exhibiting the representative work ‘Yellow Pumpkin’ by the famous Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama at its opening. The British contemporary artist Damien Hirst’s work ‘Golden Legend’ is also showcased as hotel artwork. Paradise currently exhibits about 3,000 works throughout the hotel. Since its opening, the permanent exhibition held in the resort’s space ‘Paradise Art Space’ has attracted a total of over 370,000 visitors.

Walkerhill partnered with the art popularization brand ‘Print Bakery’ to establish a flagship store inside the hotel. The existing Walkerhill Theater was newly renovated as the ‘Theater of Light’ on the 27th and will present an exhibition of Gustav Klimt’s works until next year.

This love for art by hotels aims to imprint a luxurious impression on customers and provide differentiated attractions and entertainment. It also reflects the recent increased interest in artworks among the MZ generation (Millennials + Generation Z). An industry official said, “It is part of a strategy to maximize offline experiential content to attract customers. Through exhibitions, hotels achieve branding effects, and artists can showcase their works to many customers, creating a mutually beneficial relationship.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.