Frieze Seoul 2026 will return to COEX in Gangnam, Seoul on September 2–5 2026, in partnership with Kiaf SEOUL. The fifth edition will bring together more than 125 galleries from 30 countries, with more than 70% of participants based across the Asia-Pacific region and over 50 exhibitors operating permanent spaces in Seoul.
Frieze Seoul 2026 will connect the international art world with the city’s artists, galleries and institutions. The fair reflects Seoul’s position at the center of Asia’s most influential contemporary art scene, with Korean artists gaining significant international visibility in recent years and the Asia- Pacific art world looking increasingly to Korea. Bringing together galleries from across the world, the 2026 edition remains closely connected to the creative energy, rich art histories and cultural infrastructure that define Seoul today.
The fair’s curatorial program comprises Frieze LIVE, the Frieze Seoul Artist Award, Frieze Film, Frieze Music and a talks series bringing together artists, curators and cultural voices from Korea and beyond.
Frieze Seoul is supported by Global Lead Partner Deutsche Bank, continuing a shared commitment to artistic excellence and international exchange.
Across five days, Frieze Seoul becomes a citywide cultural moment. From August 31 – September 3, the city’s Neighborhood Nights will bring late-night gallery openings, special projects and cultural programming to a different Seoul district each evening, activating Euljiro, Hannam, Cheongdam and Samcheong across the week.
Patrick Lee, Director, Frieze Seoul, said: “From the outset, Frieze Seoul has been rooted in the belief that Seoul is not simply a host city for an international art fair, but sits at the center of a country defining the future of contemporary art in Asia. This year’s fair reflects that conviction, looking outward while remaining closely connected to the artists, galleries and cultural heritage that make Seoul, and Korea’s wider cultural landscape, so compelling.”
Kristell Chadé, Executive Director of Fairs, Frieze, said: “Frieze Seoul has quickly become a major moment in the international art calendar, reflecting both the strength of Seoul’s artistic communities and the centrality of the Asia-Pacific region to contemporary culture. The 2026 edition builds on that position, bringing together leading galleries, new curated sections and an expanded view of the region’s role in contemporary art today.”
LEADING INTERNATIONAL GALLERIES
The Galleries section will bring together over 85 leading international galleries including Canada, Commonwealth and Council, Esther Schipper, Gagosian, Galerie Lelong, Gladstone, Hauser & Wirth, Lehmann Maupin, Lisson, Mazzoleni, Mennour, Meyer Riegger Wolff, Pace Gallery, Sprüth Magers, Thaddaeus Ropac, White Cube and David Zwirner. Axel Vervoordt Gallery, David Kordansky Gallery and Mendes Wood DM return to the fair following previous editions.
Participating galleries from the Asia-Pacific region span Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai, Singapore, Taipei and Hong Kong, including Asia Art Center, drawingRoom, Gallery Vacancy, gdm, Liang Gallery, STPI and more, reflecting the fair’s continued engagement with the region’s artistic communities.
Leading Korean galleries represented at the fair will include Arario Gallery, Gallery Baton, Gallery Chosun, Cylinder, Gallery Hyundai, Gana Art, Hakgojae Gallery, Jason Haam, Johyun Gallery, Kukje Gallery, Leeahn Gallery, P21 and PKM Gallery, foregrounding the strength and international influence of Korea’s contemporary art scene.
Frieze Seoul 2026 will also feature a strong presence of Japanese galleries including Anomaly, Maho Kubota, Nanzuka, Scai The Bathhouse, Taka Ishii Gallery, Take Ninagawa, Taro Nasu, Tokyo Gallery + BTAP and Tomio Koyama. The fair also welcomes new participants from across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa, including Gajah Gallery, Galerie Kandlhofer, Hafez Gallery, Maki Gallery, Parra & Romero, Theo and What If The World.
CURATED SECTIONS
Three independent curatorial voices shape the 2026 edition, bringing fresh perspectives to the fair’s expanded programme. Hyeyoung Cho’s Material Practice foregrounds Korean craft, material knowledge and experimentation, while Wonseok Koh’s Spotlight revisits art-historical narratives beyond the Western canon. In Focus, Seolhui Lee expands the section internationally, bringing together emerging galleries and artists exploring transformation, identity and speculative futures. Together, these sections articulate Frieze Seoul’s curatorial point of view, connecting Korea’s artistic histories with the ideas and practices shaping contemporary art today.
Material Practice
Curated by Hyeyoung Cho, an independent curator, Material Practice is a new section dedicated to works at the intersection of contemporary art and design. Rooted in Seoul’s long-standing traditions of craft and material innovation, the section explores how design-led and craft-based practices are shaping contemporary art and collecting today.
Among the participants is Arumjigi Foundation, a Seoul-based non-profit organisation dedicated to preserving traditional Korean culture. Participating galleries will include Admira Gallery, Art Space 3, Bienvenu Steinberg & C, Charles Burnand, Gallery LNL, Gallery Sklo, Marta, Soluna Fine Art and Waterfall Art & Gallery.
Marking its first participation as a supporter of Material Practice, LG U+ champions the section’s exploration of craft practices and the evolving relationship between contemporary art and design.
Spotlight
Spotlight, Frieze’s section dedicated to solo presentations of 20th-century artists, is introduced to Frieze Seoul for the first time, curated by Wonseok Koh, Director of Line Cultural Foundation. Spotlight will foreground overlooked figures, reassessed critical positions and significant early works by established artists, reflecting growing interest among Korean and international audiences in art- historical narratives beyond dominant Western canons.
Presentations will include Reba Hore (Art Exposure), Djordje Ivačković (Double Q), Hoon Kwak (PNC Gallery), Etsuko Nakatsuji (Yoshiaki Inoue Gallery), Po Po (Ames Yavuz), Youngsoo Han (Baik) and Nobuo Sekine (YOD Gallery).
Focus
Focus, now in its fourth year and advised by curator Seolhui Lee, brings together 16 young galleries, all established in or after 2014, each presenting a single artist whose work has been conceived for the fair. Expanding beyond Asia for the first time, the section will include galleries from Europe and the Americas alongside participants from across the region, underscoring Frieze Seoul’s role as a platform for emerging voices.
Artists featured will include Seungean Cha (Pipe Gallery), Dpgp78 (Whistle), Bekhbaatar Enkhtur (Matèria), Botond Keresztesi (Longtermhandstand), Minhee Kim (CON_), Muyeong Kim (N/A), Takuya Kumagai (Marco), Reeha Lim (Coulisse), Gabriel Massan (Yehudi Hollander-Pappi), Omyo Cho (Foundry Seoul), Geoffroy Pithon (Maāt), Johanna Seidel (Gaa), Shumu (Linseed), Ayla Tavares (Lamb), Lilyjon (Cub_ism_ Artspace) and Yongjae Lee (Caption).
With a strong presence of non-binary artists, Focus will span interactive digital environments, site-specific mural painting, weaving, woodcut and copper etching, with artists exploring ideas around transformation, identity and speculative futures.
Focus is presented in collaboration with Stone Island, whose support, alongside Frieze’s, enables participating galleries to realise ambitious presentations. Marking the 12th fair of its partnership with Frieze, Stone Island has aided the participation of more than 130 galleries across 212 presentations globally.
FRIEZE WEEK
During Frieze Week in September, Seoul’s museums and galleries will offer audiences an exceptional program of exhibitions, events and happenings across the city. Highlights will include Koo Jeong A at Leeum Museum of Art, Do Ho Suh at MMCA Seoul, Lee Bae at Museum SAN, ‘Yang Ah Ham: Undefined Panorama’ and Muyeong Kim at Art Sonje Center, Sol LeWitt at Amorepacific Museum of Art, ‘Art Spectrum 2026’ at Hoam Art Museum, ‘The Cubists: Inventing Modern Vision’ at Centre Pompidou Hanwha, Yoo Youngkuk and Amor Ex Machina at Seoul Museum of Art, ‘SONGEUN × UNBOXING PROJECT: SONGEUN Art Award 25th Anniversary Exhibition’ at SONGEUN Art and Cultural Foundation and Es Devlin at FUTURA Seoul.
Frieze’s permanent gallery space Frieze House Seoul will host Japanese gallery Yumekoubou, presenting a solo exhibition by Tanabe Chikuunsai IV, whose practice centers on large-scale bamboo sculpture.
Frieze Week also animates Seoul’s distinct neighborhoods through a series of Neighborhood Nights, each dedicated to a different district: Euljiro Night on Monday 31 August, Hannam Night on Tuesday 1 September, Cheongdam Night on Wednesday 2 September and Samcheong Night on Thursday 3 September. From the artist-run spaces and non-profit galleries of Euljiro to the international galleries of Hannam, the luxury boutiques and blue-chip spaces of Cheongdam, and the historic streets of Samcheong, the program moves through the city’s most vibrant cultural quarters, with late openings, performances and events.
Press release from Frieze
Image: Installation view from Pace Gallery at Frieze Seoul 2025. Photography by WeCap Studio. Image courtesy of Frieze
