NEW YORK, NY.- With hit songs like Gangnam Style and controversial visitors such as Dennis Rodman, the art and politics of the Korean Peninsula have recently been capturing the world’s attention. Korea’s influence, however, began more than a thousand years ago with an ancient kingdom’s political intrigue and talented craftsmen. The Met’s golden treasures from the royal tombs of Silla offer tantalizing glimpses of court life and evidence of the cross-fertilization of cultures between Korea and its neighbors.

Met curators Denise Leidy and Soyoung Lee investigate how ancient national treasures show up in modern TV series, such as Queen Seondeok of Silla, currently a huge hit in Asia. Playwright Young Jean Lee explores the life and work of her grandfather, a renowned Korean folklorist who was kidnapped when Young Jean’s mother was a small child, and never seen again.

The Spark series explores vital ideas and issues through the lens of the Met’s collections. Each cabaret-style program gathers artists, thought leaders, and performers from theater, film, politics, literature, science, and pop culture to engage in wide-ranging, fresh conversations and performances. Spark is hosted by Julie Burstein, author and Peabody Award–winning creator of public radio’s Studio 360.

This program is in conjunction with the exhibition Silla: Korea’s Golden Kingdom, on view through February 23, 2014.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art is presenting Silla: Korea’s Golden Kingdom, an exhibition dedicated to the magnificent art created between ca. 400-800, the seminal era of this intriguing kingdom. This is the first exhibition in the West to focus exclusively on the art of Silla, tracing its rise from a small polity to a powerful and cosmopolitan kingdom both on the peninsula and within the broader framework of Eurasia, to which Silla was connected via trade, and at times political and diplomatic exchanges. Drawn from the holdings of the National Museums of Korea in Seoul and Gyeongju, the more than 130 objects in this exhibition—encompassing spectacular gold regalia and precious goods and exquisite Buddhist art—introduce American audiences to this fascinating and complex culture. Many of these works are designated National Treasures or Treasures and preserved only in Korea with few, if any, parallel examples in Western museums.

The exhibition is organized by Soyoung Lee, Associate Curator, and Denise Leidy, Curator, both of the Department of Asian Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, in collaboration with colleagues at The National Museum of Korea and Gyeongju National Museum, Korea.

Tickets: $30

To order tickets:
online: http://www.metmuseum.org/tickets
Phone: 212-570-3949
Visit: The Great Hall Box Office (Monday-Saturday, 11am-3:30pm)