"It Would Rain if a Tiger's Head is Dipped in" by Kim Jipyeong is on exhibit at Gallery Hyundai in Seoul, South Korea, through Feb. 28, 2026. (Yoojin Lee/Stars and Stripes)
Animated characters from the Netflix hit “KPop Demon Hunters” may feel thoroughly modern, but their roots stretch deep into Korea’s folk art tradition.
Derpy the tiger and Sussie the six-eyed, hat-wearing magpie — familiar to audiences worldwide because of the 2025 blockbuster and its chart-topping soundtrack — draw directly from imagery long found in Korean folk painting, curators says.
Two exhibitions now on view at Gallery Hyundai — “The Way of Painting” and “Magnificence and Creativity: Variations in Korean Folk Painting” — explore those connections by pairing contemporary works with traditional paintings that echo the animated figures’ forms and symbolism.
"Goblin Tiger and Magpie Beneath the Pine Tree" by Lee Doowon, left, is on exhibit at Gallery Hyundai in Seoul, South Korea, through Feb. 28, 2026. (Yoojin Lee/Stars and Stripes)
The exhibits aim to attract both domestic and international audiences by highlighting how motifs from Korean folk art continue to shape modern visual culture.
Tigers and magpies dominate the gallery’s first floor. In traditional Korean folk painting, tigers often symbolize power or the ruling class, while magpies represent ordinary people, good fortune or social commentary.
Rather than fearsome predators, the tigers in these works appear playful and expressive, with exaggerated features and humorous poses. Their approachable look mirrors the friendly — even derpy — tiger figures.
"Tiger and Magpie," Korean folk art from the 19th century, is on exhibit at Gallery Hyundai in Seoul, South Korea, through Feb. 28, 2026. (Yoojin Lee/Stars and Stripes)
"Goblin Tiger and Magpie Beneath the Pine Tree" by Lee Doowon is on exhibit at Gallery Hyundai in Seoul, South Korea, through Feb. 28, 2026. (Yoojin Lee/Stars and Stripes)
"It Would Rain if a Tiger's Head is Dipped in" by Kim Jipyeong is on exhibit at Gallery Hyundai in Seoul, South Korea, through Feb. 28, 2026. (Yoojin Lee/Stars and Stripes)
One traditional painting, “Tiger and Magpie,” depicts two magpies seemingly speaking to a tiger, which bares its teeth in response. The scene is often interpreted as commoners voicing grievances to the elite. The tiger’s belly bears a leopard-like pattern, underscoring the imaginative freedom of the genre.
According to Gallery Hyundai, both exhibits examine how Korean painting’s aesthetic foundations endure by “expanding, transforming and reconfiguring inherited pictorial languages into independent artistic worlds.”
Six participating artists reinterpret tradition “not as a static legacy of the past, but as a living concept that has been continuously generated and renewed,” the gallery’s exhibit pamphlet states.
Both exhibits are free and run through Feb. 28.
Learn about Korean folk art at Gallery Hyundai in Seoul, South Korea, through Feb. 28, 2026. (Yoojin Lee/Stars and Stripes)
On the QT
Directions: An approximately 20-minute bus ride from either Seoul Station or Yongsan Garrison.
Times: Open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday.
Cost: Free
Food: You’ll find plenty of options, including vegan café, nearby.
Information: 02-2287-3500; English pamphlets available.
