Squid Game and K-pop celebrated in new Korean exhibition at V&A

A brand new exhibition celebrating Korean pop culture is heading to London’s V&A museum in Kensington.

‘Hallyu! The Korean Wave’ commemorates popular culture, TV, film, and music, including Squid Game, K-pop, and the Academy Award-winning film Parasite.

“Hallyu! The Korean Wave will showcase the colourful and dynamic popular culture of South Korea, exploring the makings of the Korean Wave and its global impact on the creative industries of cinema, drama, music, fandom, beauty and fashion,” reads the exhibition’s description.

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Set to open at London’s Victoria and Albert museum this coming September, Hullya will be comprised of props, posters, photography, fashion, videos, and sculptures, as well as general pop culture ephemera.

Hallyu - translating to ‘Korean Wave’ - was a ‘90s phenomenon that swept through East Asia, eventually spreading to countries far and wide as Korean popular culture became globally renowned.

Elsewhere in the exhibition, Hallyu explores the history of South Korea through photos and memoirs to show the context and making of current popular trends.

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“Section one provides historical context to the meteoric rise of hallyu, highlighting how – within living memory – South Korea rapidly evolved from a country ravaged by war in the late 1950s to a leading cultural powerhouse by the early 2000s,” a description reads.

As well as a deeper look into fashion and film, Hallyu celebrates the well-known and globally revered genre of K-pop along with its surrounding fandoms, popularisation through social media, and its global reach.

The exhibition is set to feature over 200 objects across four themed sections, which includes some items that have never been seen before in the UK.

Find out more about ‘Hallyu! The Korean Wave’ here.

Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Editorial Assistant, follow her on Twitter