News that the Samsung Group’s heirs pledged to donate late Chairman Lee Kun-hee’s vast art collection to state-run museums made headlines both inside and outside the country in late April.

The National Museum of Korea (NMK) and the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) became the biggest recipients of the donation. The NMK received some 21,600 works and the MMCA nearly 1,500 pieces.

Now, the long-awaited exhibitions showcasing the creme de la creme of these masterpieces – a total of 135 items from the early Bronze Age to the modern era – are being held at Seoul’s two main museums.

The ink and wash painting, "Clearing after Rain on Mount Inwang," by Joseon-era painter Jeong Seon (1676-1759) and two rare, surviving Buddhist paintings from the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392) are being displayed as part of the NMK's exhibition, "A Great Cultural Legacy: Masterpieces from the Bequest of the Late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee.”

Paintings and sculptures by 34 iconic modern Korean artists – including abstract master Kim Whan-ki, Lee Jung-seop, Yoo Young-kuk, Chang Uc-chin, Park Soo-keun and Chun Kyung-ja – are on display at the “MMCA Lee Kun-hee Collection: Masterpieces of Korean Art.”

"Women and Jars" (1950s) by Kim Whan-ki. Courtesy of Whanki Foundation, Whanki Museum

"Bull" (1950s) by Lee Jung-seop. Courtesy of MMCA

"Peach Blossom Spring" (1922) by Lee Sang-beom. Courtesy of MMCA

"Clearing after Rain on Mount Inwang" (1751) by Jeong Seon. Courtesy of NMK

"Standing Bodhisattva" (7th century), left, and "Sword Hilt with Twin Dragon Design" (5th-6th century). Courtesy of NMK

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