Art fair checks in to Intercontinental

Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas, located near COEX in southern Seoul, will hold the Asia Hotel Art Fair (AHAF) Seoul 2017 until Sunday. Visitors will be able to enjoy art in the rooms and hallways of the hotel instead of a typical gallery. [AHAF]

In the rooms, hallways, V.I.P. lounge and hotel lobby of the Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas in southern Seoul, visitors can enjoy works of art on display at the luxurious hotel.

On Thursday afternoon, Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas opened the 16th Asia Hotel Art Fair (AHAF) Seoul 2017 to run through Sunday, Aug. 27. In the hotel rooms - and even bathrooms - that typically accommodate guests, visitors can instead see paintings lying on the beds and pottery on the furniture.

First started in the New Otani Hotel in Tokyo in 2008 to expand the artistic trade in Asia, AHAF is held twice every year, once in Hong Kong and once in Korea.

This year’s fair utilizes various parts of the hotel to exhibit pieces from modern artists like Kim Dong-yoo, alongside multi-media art, reinterpretations of historical paintings and traditional pottery. Live music performances are held every night.

To give the visitors an experience beyond the exhibition, the hotel has collaborated with nearby Hyundai Department Store in COEX to hold seminars and special exhibitions for members of the hotel and Hyundai. The fair has also organized other exhibitions within the venue on various subjects.

One exhibition is a collaboration between six artists and Habitat for Humanity Korea, called “A Dream built with two hands.” The project considers the poor living conditions of the underprivileged in Korea.

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]

AHAF is open from 12 to 8 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. To go to Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas, get off at Samseong station, line No. 2, exit 5. For more information, visit www.hotelartfair.kr or call (02) 741-6320.