San Francisco turns purple as BTS's RM makes curatorial debut at SFMOMA

'I would have accepted any proposal coming from San Francisco — I was in the military,' RM jokes

SFMOMA director calls it the largest Korean art exhibition in the museum's 91-to-92-year history

RM (Kim Nam-joon), leader of K-pop idol group BTS. [Getty Images]

RM (Kim Nam-joon), leader of K-pop idol group BTS, has taken on the role of co-curator at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA).

Ahead of the opening of his special exhibition "RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me," which begins Saturday, RM attended a press preview at SFMOMA on Tuesday (local time) and said "I'm nervous to be making my debut as a co-curator for the first time."

"When I started visiting museums and encountering art eight years ago, I never dreamed a day like this would come," he said, adding that the project began when the museum approached him two years ago while he was serving in the military.

He joked that "at the time, since I was in the military, I would have accepted any proposal coming from San Francisco," and recalled thinking "it would be a great experience before I open the kind of exhibition space I've always dreamed of."

On what drew him to collecting art, RM said, "Whether I'm in the United States or in Seoul, I often feel like I'm drifting and floating somewhere," adding that the feeling is what made him lean so heavily on art. He added, "Music and art are different mediums, but they are the same in that they both have something to say."

He also admitted feeling guilt over a lifelong habit of collecting things.

"Is it really OK to own this many things I don't need? Have I just become a boring person with too much money?" RM said, before adding, "Maybe so — but I wanted to share my collection because I hoped other people could see these works too."

On the nature of the exhibition, he said "We talked a lot about the personal and the universal, East and West, modernity and contemporaneity — but when it came down to it, standing on the eve of the show, I thought, 'Does all of that really matter so much?' Maybe it's enough for it to simply be a good, fresh and interesting exhibition."

He acknowledged that writing the wall texts was the hardest part, given that he is not an art professional and has had no formal training, but said with confidence, "In any field, an outsider's perspective can sometimes breathe new life into things."

Fellow co-curator America Castillo echoed the sentiment, saying, "Sometimes the ability to look at things differently, through an outsider's eyes, is the greatest strength a person can have."

RM described the exhibition's deeper motivation in his own words: "Over the past century, Korea has gone through colonial rule, war and extraordinarily rapid development — much has been lost, and at the same time, something brilliant has been created. As a young person from Korea, I have been collecting works with the desire to add a fresher, younger and perhaps better perspective and sensibility, and that process led to this exhibition." He summed it up simply: "Ultimately, this exhibition is a long introduction to who I am."

Co-curator Kim Hyo-eun, who also attended the preview, described it as "an exhibition that departs not from a conventional art-historical theme, but from the artistic vision one individual has built over many years."

SFMOMA Director Christopher Bedford called it "the largest exhibition of Korean art in our museum's 91-to-92-year history, and RM's first curatorial venture," smiling as he added, "We are also very proud of the ticket sales for this exhibition." Membership preview tickets have sold out, and weekend tickets are moving quickly as well.

The exhibition features 142 works from RM's personal collection alongside 36 from the museum's own holdings — 178 pieces in total. It runs from Saturday through Feb. 7 next year.

When asked why he chose San Francisco to show his collection, RM laughed off the question. "That's not even a question," he said. "San Francisco is one of the greatest cities in the world."

Outside the museum on the day of the media preview, members of the BTS fan club ARMY had gathered from around the world to wait for RM, cheering on the journalists who arrived to see the show.

yckim6452@heraldcorp.com