The Seoul Museum of Art

Korea's Samil Movement is commemorated on March 1st. Today marked the 88th anniversary of the Independence Movement against Japanese colonial rule. It also meant I was "free" from work.

I took bus 7000 from Suwon to Sadang Station, and rode the metro to City Hall station to see the Rene Margritte 'Empire of Dreams' exhibition at the Seoul Museum of Art: SeMA.

The Koreana Hotel, 5 minutes from City Hall.

A fine gentleman, like Al Pacino in 'Scent of a Woman.'

The entrance to Deok Su Gung Palace, located beside SeMA.

Deok Su Gung Palace has quiet grounds including a pond and benches. Korea's National bird rustles the trees.

The path to Seoul Museum of Art:

Below: A free collection, on the first floor, showing until April 8th. Kwon Young-Woo's Lifework in Paper.

With a 10$ ticket I gained admittance to both the showcase exhibit and Chun Kyung-Ya's Spirit: a standing exhibition. Cameras were forbidden but I was blown away by her donated works. The pieces were completed between 1940 and 1990, inspired by her travels abroad. She has a keen sense of color, and storytelling ability.

Next came Rene Magritte's Empire of Dreams, sprawlling two floors. Rene is a surrealist master of the 20th century, a revolutionary artist. The exhbit included a display of intimate photos and videos, inviting the world into Rene's life and marriage.

Instead of juxtaposing unrelated objects to shock the eye, he places familiar ones in abstracted contexts. There's a mesmerizing quality to his work. Even if his art isn't your thing, you won't be able to peel your eyes way.

A night shot of the museum: