Germany's MUCA Hosts First Korean Collection Exhibition... 72 Works Including Banksy and Kaws in One Place

Chungmu Art Center Gallery Sindang
Urban Art: From Street to Museum (ICONS OF URBAN ART)
Exhibition including Banksy's 'Damaged Phone Booth'

An exhibition bringing together works by 10 leading artists representing Urban Art, including Banksy, Invader, JR, KAWS, and Shepard Fairey, will be held in one place.

Christian, the founder of MUCA, and his wife Stephanie Utz are posing in front of Banksy's 'Damaged Phone Booth.'
[Photo by Chungmu Art Center]

MUCA (Museum of Urban and Contemporary Art), Germany's first urban art museum, will open its first exhibition in Korea, "Urban Art: From the Streets to the Museum (ICONS OF URBAN ART)," on the 2nd at the Chungmu Art Center Gallery Sindang in Seoul.

Urban Art refers to various forms of art encountered in urban public spaces such as walls, buildings, and roads, including graffiti art and street art. This exhibition will showcase over 70 works including paintings, prints, and sculptures by 10 representative urban artists such as Banksy, Barry McGee, Os Gemeos, and Richard Hambleton.

MUCA, Germany's first urban art museum, was founded in 2016 by the couple Christian and Stephanie Utz. The works exhibited in this show were selected from 72 pieces of the permanent collection the couple has accumulated over more than 25 years.

At this exhibition, MUCA attracted attention by unveiling two sculptural works by the "faceless artist" Banksy: "Vandalised Phone Box" and "Ariel."

Swoon, the 'Ice Queen.' Swoon, a female graffiti artist based in Brooklyn, New York, is one of the first women internationally recognized in the male-dominated graffiti field, known for her intricate and emotionally resonant style.
[Photo by Chungmu Art Center]

The "Red Phone Box," installed in a London Soho alley in 2005, is an installation piece that makes the side of the phone box appear to be stabbed with a pickaxe and bleeding, serving as a striking visual commentary on social change while also being a controversial work criticized as vandalism.

Also on display are "Ariel," an icon of Dismaland created in 2015 by Banksy in collaboration with 58 artists to darkly twist Disneyland, and the oil painting "Are You Using That Chair?," a parody of Edward Hopper's masterpiece "Nighthawks."

Banksy, 'Are You Using That Chair?', 2005 [Photo by Chungmu Art Center]

In addition, the exhibition features a variety of distinctive works by artists such as the French artist Invader, who also remains anonymous, with his large LED piece "Moon," and KAWS's iconic character "4FT COMPANION," among others.

The exhibition runs until February 2, 2025. Admission fees are 20,000 KRW for adults (ages 19 to under 65) and 15,000 KRW for youth (ages 13 to 18).