Park Han-sol reports on Korea's financial regulators, along with fintech and insurance. She previously wrote about the art world, from biennales and exhibitions to fairs and auctions, with a focus on Seoul and the figures shaping the scene. Before joining The Korea Times, she spent a year at ABC News' Seoul bureau, contributing to coverage of major Asia-Pacific events.
Granary-turned-museum opens in Incheon with Mona Lisa, Alex Katz shows
Installation view of the digital art exhibition, "Mona Lisa Immersive," at the newly opened Museum L in Incheon / Courtesy of Museum L
By Park Han-sol
INCHEON — In 1978, Incheon built what would become Asia’s largest granary, a key facility for distributing grain and feed across the country.
Fast-forward four decades, and this 12,150-square-meter warehouse located at the Port of Incheon, once bustling with industrial activity, has been given a new lease on life as a cultural landmark of the city.
This July, the revitalized venue, with its glass facade, original steel framework and soaring ceiling, welcomed its latest tenant — Museum L.
The 12,150-square-meter warehouse, once built as Asia's largest granary, has been revitalized as a new cultural landmark in the port city of Incheon. Korea Times photo by Park Han-sol
Established by LG HelloVision, the museum features three exhibition halls, each tailored to different artistic mediums.
“The first, Immersive Hall, is dedicated to multisensory media art; the second, Art Hall, focuses on fine art and the third, Special Hall, is reserved for uniquely themed shows. Such a structure allows visitors to experience a diverse range of mediums all in one place,” Kim Hyun-jung, director of Museum L, said at a press conference, July 25.
Its debut is celebrated with the launch of three simultaneous exhibitions, marking a new chapter for the once-abandoned venue.
"Mona Lisa Immersive," co-organized by the Louvre Museum and Grand Palais Immersif, offers an intimate, face-to-face rendezvous with Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece. Courtesy of Museum L
Upon entering the first exhibition hall, visitors lock eyes with the most iconic masterpiece in art history: the “Mona Lisa.”
While the original 16th-century portrait remains far from reach at the Louvre Museum in Paris behind bulletproof glass and ever-present throngs of tourists, “Mona Lisa Immersive” allows for an intimate, face-to-face encounter with La Gioconda’s enigmatic smile.
Co-developed by the Louvre and Grand Palais Immersif, this digital exhibition takes viewers on a virtual journey, revealing visual details of the painting that cannot be observed with the naked eye — from the layers of varnish applied during restoration efforts to close-up views of the jagged hills in the misty background.
It also delves into how Leonardo da Vinci’s commissioned portrait of an Italian silk merchant’s wife became the object of a sensational theft in the early 20th century and ultimately, an enduring cultural icon that continues to inspire creatives today.
Incheon is the first overseas stop for the show following its 2022 premiere in Marseille, France.
American painter Alex Katz's woodcut and linoleum cut "Marisa" (2017) / Courtesy of Museum L
While “Mona Lisa Immersive” offers a virtual peek into the 500-year-old Renaissance masterpiece, “Albertina Museum Collection: Alex Katz” in the second exhibition hall spotlights a living modern master of figurative painting.
All 67 works by Alex Katz on display — paintings, drawings, studies, prints and cutouts — hail from the rich holdings of the Albertina Museum in Vienna.
Mounted as a comprehensive overview of Katz’s prolific career, the show aims to present the 97-year-old American artist as a pioneer who has developed his own approach to figurative painting, according to curator Gunhild Bauer of the Austrian museum.
His oeuvre, characterized by billboard-sized portraits and imposing canvases of light-filled landscapes, often encapsulates the essence of his subjects with simplified forms and sharply edged, flat planes of color.
Installation view of "Albertina Museum Collection: Alex Katz" at Museum L / Courtesy of Museum L
Alex Katz's billboard-sized portraits and canvases of light-filled landscapes often encapsulate the essence of his subjects with simplified forms and flat planes of color. Korea Times photo by Park Han-sol
His portraits, frequently of his wife Ada and friends from the New York art and fashion scenes, are noted for their cool, impersonal detachment, capturing not only physical likeness but also an uncanny presence. Such a distinct mix of figuration and abstraction makes him a singular character in the art world, with his image becoming an instantly recognizable one.
The artist is known for completing each of his pieces within just a few hours using a wet-in-wet technique, following meticulous preparation and underdrawing.
“I think style is the content of my painting, and I think style belongs to fashion, and fashion is an immediate present, and that’s what I was after,” he once remarked.
"Basketball: The Greatest Players 75" brings together over 150 items of memorabilia from the top 75 players in NBA history. Courtesy of Museum L
Lastly, “Basketball: The Greatest Players 75” takes center stage in the cavernous third exhibition hall.
Jointly organized with the E-Land Museum, the show brings together over 150 pieces of memorabilia — jerseys, sneakers, balls, championship trophies and signed Sports Illustrated covers — from the top 75 players in National Basketball Association (NBA) history.
It’s a trip worth making for sports enthusiasts to get a glimpse of the legends of the game, including Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson.
In addition to housing Museum L, the venue will serve as a platform for boutique shops, bistros, themed pop-up shows, kinetic installations and educational programs in the coming months.