RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me

RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me is an art exhibition at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) in San Francisco, California, curated by South Korean rapper-songwriter RM in collaboration with SFMOMA curators América Castillo and Hyoeun Kim. It brings together works from RM's personal collection and works from SFMOMA's collection, including modern and contemporary Korean art presented alongside international art. The exhibition opened to general public on October 3, 2026, and is expected to run until February 7, 2027.

Background

In June 2022, RM discussed the possibility of opening a space to showcase his art collection during an interview on the Art Basel Podcast.

In 2022, SFMOMA approached RM about a potential exhibition collaboration. RM later said that the museum presented him with the exhibition proposal while he was completing his mandatory military service, and that the project was subsequently developed over approximately two years.

On October 2, 2025, SFMOMA announced that RM would curate an exhibition featuring works from his personal collection.

The exhibition was developed as a dialogue between works from RM's collection and works from SFMOMA's collection, bringing Korean and international modern and contemporary art together across different periods and contexts.

Ticket reservations for museum members opened on August 4, 2026, with general ticket sales beginning August 11, 2026.

Exhibition

SFMOMA describes the exhibition as featuring nearly 200 works, with approximately three-quarters from RM's collection and one-quarter from the museum's collection. The works date from the 13th century to the present and include paintings, drawings, sculptures, ceramics, textiles and design works.

Contemporary reports published ahead of the public opening described 178 works in the exhibition, including approximately 140 from RM's personal collection and 36 from SFMOMA's collection. Most of the works from RM's collection were reported as being shown in the United States for the first time.

RM's collection includes works by Korean artists including Yun Hyong-keun, Park Rehyun, Chang Ucchin, Kwon Okyon, Kim Yun Shin and To Sangbong. Works from SFMOMA's collection include artists such as Kim Whanki, Nam June Paik, Mark Rothko, Agnes Martin, Henri Matisse and Georgia O’Keeffe.

The exhibition places works by Korean artists alongside works by artists from other countries. Among the pairings reported from the exhibition is a presentation of a work by Yun Hyong-keun from RM's collection alongside a work by Mark Rothko from SFMOMA's collection.

The presentation includes bilingual wall texts and artwork labels written by RM, as well as audio guides in English and Korean recorded by him. RM also selected music for an in-gallery playlist.

Exhibition sections The exhibition is divided into eight sections: "Blue Water", "Friendscape", "Home", "Photo Buddha", "People", "Passion", "I don’t know why, but I like it", and "Umber", organized around different emotions and interests.

Blue Water The "Blue Water" section groups works around themes of infinity and metaphysical space, using blue pigments as a visual motif

Home and Passion Both "Home" and "Passion" sections include works exploring themes of comfort and human resilience.

I Don’t Know Why, But I Like It The "I Don't Know Why But I Like It" section brings together eclectic works selected largely through RM's intuitive responses to art. RM described the section as reflecting his uncertainty about why he collected some works, emphasizing that appreciation of art does not always require an explanation based on art history or criticism.

Curatorial approach

RM participated directly in the planning and curation of the exhibition with América Castillo and Hyoeun Kim. He developed the exhibition's concept with the SFMOMA curators and participated in selecting the works.

The selection and pairing of works were informed by art-historical context, artistic technique and emotional associations. SFMOMA describes RM's perspective as being incorporated into the exhibition's selection, gallery art direction, questions posed to visitors, wall texts and artwork labels.

At the September 29, 2026 preview, RM said that two questions had guided his selection of works: whether a work moved him and whether the artist and work still had something to say in 2026.

Themes

RM has described the exhibition in terms of boundaries between East and West, Korea and America, modern and contemporary art, and the personal and the universal. He said that he did not want to prescribe how the works should be viewed and that different perspectives were welcome.

The exhibition reflects RM's personal approach to collecting art. SFMOMA describes his collection as being built on personal resonance rather than market trends or academic argument, with his perspective incorporated into the selection and presentation of the works.

The exhibition places Korean and international artworks in dialogue through shared themes including nature, memory and human existence. SFMOMA describes the presentation as inviting visitors to encounter familiar works in a new light and to form their own connections with the works.

Reception and impact The exhibition had a measurable impact on SFMOMA's membership. Membership sign-ups following the exhibition announcement were the highest in the museum's history, while the first 24 hours of member reservations generated 12,000 reservations, about 84% of which were from new members.

The exhibition also generated overseas demand for Korean museum merchandise. The National Museum Foundation of Korea exported approximately US$110,000 worth of its MU:DS products for sale at SFMOMA, its largest single export to an overseas museum. The initial order was about 71% higher than the combined value of two shipments made for the previous year's exhibition of the Lee Kun-hee Collection at the Smithsonian.

Public and media response

The exhibition generated substantial interest before its public opening. When member ticket reservations opened on August 4, 2026, SFMOMA experienced unusually high web traffic and visitors encountered an online queue exceeding one hour.

A press preview was held at SFMOMA on September 29, 2026, ahead of the exhibition's public opening. RM attended the preview and spoke about his first experience serving as a museum co-curator, saying that he was nervous about the role. He discussed the exhibition as a personal introduction to his collection and perspective, while also describing his position as an outsider to the professional art world as a potential source of a different perspective.

The preview received coverage from Korean and international media, with journalists and photographers documenting the exhibition and RM's involvement in its presentation. Fans also gathered outside SFMOMA, including visitors who had traveled from Europe. Some fans distributed handmade items to visitors and members of the media.

The exhibition's museum-shop merchandise also drew attention during the preview. Media outlets reported that merchandise sold rapidly, requiring consistent replenishment.

Notable exhibits Nam June Paik's TV Buddha

Nam June Paik's TV Buddha is displayed in the exhibition's "Photo Buddha" section. The installation is paired with a drawing of TV Buddha from SFMOMA's collection; RM described the pairing as a way of bringing together his own work with the museum's collection.

Kim Whanki's 26-I-70

Kim Whanki's 26-I-70 is among the works displayed in the exhibition. The work is presented alongside another painting by Kim from RM's personal collection, creating a pairing between works from the museum and RM's collection.

RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me

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