"Ten Kings of Hell: The Afterlife in Medieval Korea" - Preview, Soprano Performance, and Curator Tour

Blog Date

Friday, November 6, 2026

Author(s)

Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Interesting People I Met

I would like to start by mentioning some of the people I met during this event.

Before the preview, I talked to some people from the University Circle marketing staff while enjoying some refreshments in the museum's private dining room. It was good to learn about their good work. I told them how my wife and co-blogger, Julie, and I are often write about events and museums in University Circle. (In addition to the Cleveland Museum of Art, we've written about: Cleveland History Center, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland Botanical Garden.) Click here to read some of our 88 blog posts about University Circle. While writing this blog post, I found it interesting to see the Thursday, October 15, 2026, announcement of a name and branding change for Cleveland's cultural circle:

University Circle Inc., the nonprofit that works to strengthen Cleveland’s University Circle, is now University Circle Alliance (UCA). The new name builds on decades of work with the institutions, businesses and residents who shape the district.

Heidi Hudak, chief marketing and experience officer at University Circle Alliance, revealed the name Wednesday [October 14, 2026] at State of the Circle, a public event at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
. . .
The new logo carries the same idea forward. Both the University Circle and University Circle Alliance marks draw inspiration from a DNA double helix, transformed into the interlocking UC and UCA letterforms.

University Circle has a new identity for the place, and the nonprofit behind it has a new name: University Circle Alliance. Together, the two brands make it easier to tell the full story of University Circle.

University Circle | Excellence Is in Our DNA
. . . Oct 14, 2026

While I was talking to the University Circle marketing staff, artist Carla Wagner joined us. "Carla Wagner is a recent Spring 2025 graduate from Kent State University. She pursued a B.F.A. in Studio Art with a concentration in Painting and a Minor in Drawing." She is currently working at University Circle, and she told me about her upcoming show at Summit ArtSpace: Bad Girls | Group Exhibition (October 15 - December 19, 2026). I always enjoy the art shows in Akron at Summit ArtSpace (click here to see my related blog posts). I hope to see the current exhibitions.

Join Cleveland Public Library and Silk Road Cultural Collective for Journey Through Asia on Saturday, December 5, 2026, from 3–5 PM at the Cleveland Public Library – Martin Luther King Jr. Branch, 10601 Euclid Ave.

Enlarge Journey
to Asia Poster

Finally, I want to thank Dan Hanson (be sure to see his website: ClevelandPeople.com) for introducing me to Johnny Wu, who I often see on social media taking a leadership role in Cleveland area cultural events. They told me about the Silk Road Cultural Collective’s upcoming Saturday, December 5, 2026, Journey to Asia, which I would like to attend.

Going to Ten Kings of Hell

Organized in partnership with the National Museum of Korea, this landmark international exhibition, Ten Kings of Hell: The Afterlife in Medieval Korea, explores the artistic legacy of the Goryeo dynasty (918–1392), posing daring questions: How did medieval Koreans envision the world beyond death and how did works of art and materiality shape and reflect that imagined realm?

Presenting an exceptional array of important artworks, including the CMA’s recent acquisitions—the Fourth King of Hell from the late 1300s, the Knife Sheath from the 1100s (Apollo’s Acquisition of the Year Award 2022), and the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva from the 1300s—the exhibition unfolds across three interlocking sections, each illuminating the soul’s passage from death through purgatory to the Buddhist paradise. At its dramatic center is the historic reunification of a dispersed set of 10 hanging scrolls from the 1300s depicting the 10 Kings of Hell. Brought together for the first time since the 1960s, the scrolls offer a rare opportunity to experience the set’s panoramic sequence of judgment, atonement, and salvation.

Among its most compelling narratives, the exhibition examines how sociopolitical upheavals and environmental pressures shaped medieval Korea’s deep preoccupation with purgatorial afterlife—not only as a moral and devotional terrain but also as a response to broader natural forces, from climatic volatility during the Little Ice Age to the devastating reach of the Black Death. A select group of contemporary artworks is also included to underscore the enduring resonance of humanity’s existential concerns.

Anicka Yi’s Bending Willow Branches (2025) makes a strong opening statement: that death adds to life’s continuum—mutating, persisting, and transforming rather than ending it. Park Chan-kyong’s Belated Bosal (2019) serves as a visually and psychologically immersive centerpiece, prompting viewers to confront human-induced environmental catastrophes and their far-reaching karmic consequences. The circuit further widens with The Third King of Hell Afterimage (2025) by 2025 MacArthur Fellow Gala Porras-Kim, created specifically for this show as a critical inquiry into the afterlives of objects within Western collecting practices.

Additionally, the exhibition incorporates innovative digital experiences that deepen engagement with the artworks and themes. Visitors have the opportunity to interact with the Sutra Container in 3-D and to look closer into the artwork by exploring intricate details of select paintings on a large-scale “Zoom Wall.” Complementing these visual experiences are carefully designed audio and video installations, from the meditative resonance of a Buddhist temple bell to the evocative projection of contemporary works.

Featuring more than one hundred works drawn from leading public and private collections in Korea, Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom, Ten Kings of Hell: The Afterlife in Medieval Korea is accompanied by a substantial, richly illustrated catalogue, anchored in the contributing scholars’ shared commitment to transregional and interdisciplinary investigation.

After leaving the museum's private dining room, I went to the Museum's special exhibitions galleries to explore Ten Kings of Hell: The Afterlife in Medieval Korea on my own. I want to thank the Cleveland Museum of Art for giving me a special commemorative pin from the exhibition as I entered the gallery.

Before attending the preview, I assumed that the artwork shown in the exhibition would be from only the Goryeo dynasty, which the announcement from the museum listed as existing from 918 to 1392. According to Encyclopædia Britannica, "Goryeo dynasty, in Korean history, dynasty that ruled the Korean peninsula as the Goryeo kingdom from 935 to 1392 CE. During this period the country began to form its own cultural tradition distinct from the rest of East Asia. It is from the name Goryeo that the Western name Korea is derived." As I entered the galleries to see the the optical fibers of Anicka Yi's Bending Willow Branches (2025), I quickly realized that I was wrong. While most of the items are from medieval Korea, there are also several contemporary pieces, including:

A film (Autoradiography, Fukushima, 2012 - present day)
A motion-tracking exhibit (which the museum's press release calls "a large scale 'Zoom Wall'") that lets you interact with pieces of artwork
A bright blue art piece made out of sequins, polyester resin, and fiberglass (For the Worshipers, 2007. Noh Sang Kyoo)
An interactive, three-dimensional model of Sutra Container 금동 동자유희무늬 불경상자 [金銅童子遊戱文佛經匣]

I found it fascinating to read the following description about the "Prunus Vase with Incised Peony Design 청자 음각 모란무늬 매병 [靑磁陰刻牡丹文梅甁]" that I saw during the exhibition's preview:

Enlarge Image

Prunus Vase with Incised Peony Design
(청자 음각 모란무늬 매병), 1100s-1200s
Stoneware with celadon glaze

Korea, Goryeo dynasty (918-1392)

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of John L. Severance 1921.645

When this vase entered the CMA collection in 1921, the rim of its opening was already broken and was left unrepaired. The decision not to conserve the vase for this exhibition reflects the scholarly view that the rim was intentionally broken before burial as part of a funerary ritual. Far from an act of vandalism, this deliberate damage likely served to transform the vessel into a sacred object intended exclusively for use in the afterlife.

I really liked the idea that the Prunus Vase was purposely broken so it would only be used in the afterlife. Details about the piece are also provided on the Museum's website at: ClevelandArt.org/art/1921.645

In one of the exhibition's galleries, visitors can interact with a three-dimensional model of a Sutra Container 금동 동자유희무늬 불경상자 [金銅童子遊戱文佛經匣]. It can also can be viewed on the museum's website or you can use it any way you like, as I have done here, through the CMA's Open Access Initiative.

1998.121 Sutra Container by Cleveland Museum of Art on Sketchfab

This is a portable container once used to preserve a miniature Buddhist sacred text. Created by hammering the reverse, high-relief designs on both the front and back of the case depict a peaceful pond where young boys are holding giant lotus flowers in their hands, and a pair of mandarin ducks are swimming. Probably the playful boys represent newly reborn souls in the Pure Land.
. . . .
Exhibition History
Ten Kings of Hell: The Afterlife in Medieval Korea. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 11, 2026-January 3, 2027).

Cite this Artwork
Sutra Container (금동 동자유희무늬 불경상자 [金銅童子遊戱文佛經匣]), 1100s. Korea, Goryeo dynasty (918–1392). Gilt bronze with incised and high relief decoration; overall: 10.2 x 6.5 x 1.5 cm (4 x 2 9/16 x 9/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mitsuru Tajima, 1998.121

Here is the description I saw in the gallery of how the three-dimensional model was created:

This three-dimensional model was created using a technique called photogrammetry. During the process, a photographer creates numerous overlapping images of an object, detailing each part of it multiple times. A software program creates the 3D model following a sequence of processing steps. Including this portable sutra, the Cleveland Museum of Art is creating 1,000 artworks in 3D for everyone to experience art in new ways. We invite you ... to explore more and enjoy this artwork in 3D.

Here are my photos and videos from when I explored the Ten Kings of Hell exhibition.

I recommend viewing videos in full screen mode.
Please feel free to pause the video to look more closely at the artwork and to read the interesting facts that are in the slides!!

You might have noticed in my photos above that Spectacular Freedom: Andrew Wyeth and the Modern American Watercolor is the other exhibition that is currently on display at the Cleveland Museum of Art. (Please learn more by clicking here to read my blog post.) I want to repeat here what I wrote in my previous blog post about the Cleveland Museum of Art's combined ticket price discount for its current two exhibitions:

Special offer: See the Spectacular Freedom exhibition and the Ten Kings of Hell exhibition together as a combo package and save up to $9 off the combined ticket price!

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On Thursday, September 17, 2026, we were fortunate to attend The Cleveland Museum of Art’s Spectacular Freedom: Andrew Wyeth and the Modern American Watercolor preview. We are sharing here photos from the preview to encourage others to visit the museum to see this and other exhibitions. Those of us who live in Northeast Ohio are very fortunate to have this world-class museum here in Cleveland. General admission is always free, and members receive free tickets to the museum's special exhibitions.

We noted on the museum's website that there is a special offer for this exhibition: "See Spectacular Freedom and Ten Kings of Hell together as a combo package and save up to $9 off the combined ticket price." The Ten Kings of Hell exhibition is open from Sunday, October 11, 2026, through Sunday, January 3, 2027.

Soprano Minkyeong Kim

As the date of the preview grew closer, invitees received an exciting email update. We would be hearing a performance by local soprano, Minkyeong Kim. She would be opening the Cleveland Museum of Art Ten Kings of Hell preview with her special vocal performance of classical Korean arrangements and Golden from the critically acclaimed KPop Demon Hunters.

While I was writing this blog post, I learned that her singing at the preview had a deeper meaning for Minkyeong Kim. I saw that she wrote the following on social media about her experience:

Years ago, when I was studying at CIM [Cleveland Institute of Music], I often visited the Cleveland Museum of Art, just across the street, quietly dreaming that one day I might have the opportunity to perform there.

That dream has now come true in the most meaningful way.

I was deeply honored to perform two Korean songs at the media preview of Ten Kings of Hell, a remarkable exhibition curated by Dr. Sooa Im McCormick, the CMA’s Korean art curator. Bringing together all ten paintings from the Goryeo Dynasty for the first time, this groundbreaking exhibition is a significant celebration of Korean art and heritage.

Standing before these extraordinary works of art and singing Korean songs was more than a performance. As a Korean American who still calls Cleveland home, it was a deeply personal moment—a connection between my cultural roots, my musical journey, and the community that has been part of my life for so many years.

Having performed on many stages throughout my musical journey, this experience felt truly unique. It reminded me that music can be more than sound; it can be a bridge between cultures, history, and identity.

My heartfelt thanks to Dr. Sooa Im McCormick for this special invitation, and to Jacqueline on the CMA marketing team for her kindness and professionalism.

If you’re in Cleveland, I wholeheartedly encourage you to visit Ten Kings of Hell at the Cleveland Museum of Art. It is a rare and extraordinary opportunity to experience the beauty and depth of Korean art and history.

Some dreams take years to come full circle. I’m so grateful to have been part of this beautiful moment.

I recommend viewing videos in full screen mode.

Above is my video of part of her performance. It you want to watch the full performance, you are in luck!Soprano Minkyeong Kim posted the full songs on her YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@minkimjoy

Curator Tour with Sooa Im McCormick
Korea Foundation Curator of Korean Art

Sooa Im McCormick joined the Cleveland Museum of Art in 2015 and is primarily responsible for the Korean art collection. Her interests include Korean art and architecture from the 1600s to the present and the crosscurrents in East Asian visual culture from the 1600s to the 1800s. McCormick holds a PhD from the University of Kansas, with a dissertation titled “Comparative and Cross-Cultural Perspectives on Chinese and Korean Court Documentary Painting in the Eighteenth Century.”

After a welcome message and exhibition background information from Cleveland Museum of Art Chief Marketing Officer Todd Mesek, preview attendees heard details about the exhibition during a guided tour with Cleveland Museum of Art's Curator of Korean Art, Sooa Im McCormick.

It was especially interesting and helpful to hear the curator's talk, and her description of the layout and progression of the exhibition, from burial artifacts, to hell, and then to paradise. I strongly recommend taking a curator- or docent-guided tour of the exhibition. Here is part of the official exhibition press release that mentions the sections of the exhibition:

The exhibition unfolds across three interlocking sections, each illuminating the soul’s passage from death through purgatory to the Buddhist paradise. At its dramatic center is the historic reunification of all 10 scrolls. This set of 10 awe-inspiring Ten Kings of Hell hanging scrolls, which are currently housed in six different museums around the world, is reunited in the exhibition for the first time since the 1960s. Of particular significance is the Third King, whose whereabouts remained unknown for more than 50 years. Its recent rediscovery in the Museum of Modern Art in Gunma, Japan, transformed this exhibition into a celebratory venue, prompting new scholarly understanding of the 10 Kings imagery tradition in Korea.

I recommend viewing videos in full screen mode.
Please feel free to pause the video to look more closely at the artwork.

Yale University Press Book: Ten Kings of Hell - The Afterlife in Medieval Korea

A storied exploration of a preeminent belief in the East Asian imagination of the afterlife: the Ten Kings of Hell
. . .
Authors
Sooa Im McCormick is Korea Foundation Curator of Korean Art at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Yukio Lippit is Jeffrey T. Chambers and Andrea Okamura Professor of the History of Art and Architecture at Harvard University.

If you click on the "BOOK FLYER" button on the Yale University Press web page, you will see: "Use code YUP25 at checkout for 25% off. Valid in the United States and Canada. Print editions only."

Ten Kings of Hell: The Afterlife in Medieval Korea, by Sooa Im McCormick and Yukio Lippit
Yale Press
. . . Sep 3, 2026
Ten Kings of Hell: The Afterlife in Medieval Korea
by Sooa Im McCormick and Yukio Lippit

Contributions by In Hee Song

Journey into the world of medieval Korean Buddhist belief, where the Ten Kings of Hell judged the souls of the deceased on their path toward atonement and salvation. This lavishly illustrated catalogue explores one of East Asia's most enduring visions of the afterlife through rare Goryeo dynasty (918–1392) masterpieces, considered alongside Chinese and Japanese counterparts, the Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279) and the Nanboku-cho period (1333–92).

Discover how Buddhist belief in afterlife transformed Korean mortuary practices as reflected in luxurious burial and commemorative objects such as celadons, metalwork, and stone sarcophagi. Trace the evolution of Ten Kings imagery as an independent art form, revealing how environmental disasters and social and public health upheaval shaped these haunting hellscapes. Essays by leading scholars illuminate the complex interplay of piety, wealth, and the pursuit of salvation in times of profound crisis.

Featuring several Korean national treasures and recently discovered and reattributed Goryeo-period Buddhist paintings published here for the first time, this interdisciplinary volume illuminates a crucial aspect of East Asian religious art. Contemporary artist Gala Porras-Kim presents an artistic inquiry into modern-period collecting practices through her reinterpretation of the Third King of Hell—once believed lost and now rediscovered, making its first public debut as a color plate in both the catalogue and the exhibition.

Distributed for the Cleveland Museum of Art

Exhibition Schedule:

The Cleveland Museum of Art
(October 11, 2026–January 3, 2027)