Mayor Lurie Celebrates MOU Between Asian Art Museum and National Museum of Korea

SAN FRANCISCO – Mayor Daniel Lurie today celebrated the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the San Francisco Asian Art Museum and the National Museum of Korea. The MOU will launch a five-year partnership to promote cross-cultural collaboration, expand artistic exchange, and deepen connections between San Francisco and Korea through exhibitions, research, and public programming.

Signed in Seoul during Mayor Lurie’s visit commemorating 50 years of the sister city relationship between San Francisco and Seoul, the MOU builds on his efforts to accelerate San Francisco’s economic recovery through the arts. To continue driving San Francisco’s comeback with arts and culture, the mayor is advancing the city’s creative economy with a search for San Francisco’s new executive director of arts and culture. In his first year in office, he launched SF LIVE, a citywide show guide and online events calendar designed to boost ticket sales for live arts venues, and brought back SF Music Week, which returned this year, further strengthening San Francisco’s position as a vital music hub. The mayor has also taken steps to strengthen local arts and culture institutions, build partnerships with the private and philanthropic sectors, and advance a plan to accelerate downtown San Francisco’s comeback.

“Our arts and culture institutions are helping drive San Francisco’s comeback,” said Mayor Lurie. “Through this partnership between the Asian Art Museum and the National Museum of Korea, we are strengthening longstanding ties with Seoul. As we celebrate 50 years of our sister city relationship, we are expanding cultural exchange, collaboration, and opportunities for connection between our countries.”

“On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of San Francisco-Seoul sister city relationship, this partnership reflects a shared commitment to presenting Korean art in its full depth and complexity—connecting past and present, and local histories with global audiences,” said Dr. Soyoung Lee, the Barbara Bass Bakar Director and CEO of the Asian Art Museum. “By working together, we have an opportunity not only to expand access to Korea’s extraordinary cultural heritage, but also to foster meaningful exchange between our institutions, our scholars, and our communities. We see this as the beginning of a sustained collaboration that will shape how Korean art is experienced and understood internationally.”

The signing marks the final milestone Mayor Lurie’s first international trip as mayor—visiting China and South Korea to strengthen San Francisco’s sister city relationships with Shanghai and Seoul, deepen arts and culture partnerships, and promote tourism to San Francisco.