Overview

• The co-located fairs closed at Coex with attendance topping 80,000 and more than 160 museums and institutions represented, according to organizers.
• Dealers reported notable transactions beyond the headline sale, including Georg Baselitz at €1.8 million and Alex Katz at $900,000 at Thaddaeus Ropac, while Kiaf highlights included a Park Seo-bo work above 400 million won and a sellout of Ugo Rondinone’s Color Mountain series.
• This year’s Frieze Seoul hosted around 120 galleries with a larger Asian contingent, and the number of Korean participants has grown significantly since the 2022 launch.
• Industry sources describe a cooled market since 2022, with estimates near 500 billion won in value and roughly 100 small galleries closing over recent years.
• Exhibitors cited strong VIP interest but described cautious domestic buying, with some estimating Korean-to-international collectors at about 60:40, as Frieze leadership stressed long-term commitment to Seoul following Ari Emanuel’s buyback.