BTS lead member behind a special Bay Area showing
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - NOVEMBER 24: RM of boy band BTS is seen at the 18th W Magazine Korea Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign "Love Your W" photo call at Four Seasons Hotel on November 24, 2023 in Seoul, South Korea. (Photo by Han Myung-Gu/WireImage)
SAN FRANCISCO - The lead member of the global musical sensation, South Korean boy band BTS, is bringing a special show to the Bay Area — an event that’s being marked as the only U.S. presentation, though it won’t be featuring the kind of art he’s widely known for.
RM, whose real name is Kim Namjoon, is collaborating with the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art for a highly anticipated, first-of-its-kind exhibition featuring artwork from his personal collection interwoven with SFMOMA pieces.
What we know:
It’s called RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me and will open next month.
The exhibition was specially curated by RM along with SFMOMA's Curatorial Project Manager América Castillo and Hyoeun Kim, assistant curator of painting and sculpture.
The collaboration will bring together almost 200 works by Korean and international artists representing masterpieces that back to the 13th century and span to present day.
The backstory:
The collaboration has been two years in the making.
"Drawn to the artist’s thoughtfully assembled collection of modern and contemporary art, SFMOMA invited RM to curate the first exhibition to showcase his collection in this collaborative presentation," the museum said in a news release.
RM x SFMOMA will feature a wide range of art mediums, from paintings, drawings, and sculptures, to ceramics, textiles, and design works — pieces from the BTS superstar's collection that have never been publicly exhibited in the U.S., according to SFMOMA.
"RM’s collection is built on personal resonance, not market trends or academic argument. The exhibition reflects that sensibility," SFMOMA's Managing Editor Cristina Chan wrote.
In dialogue
RM's collection was born from museum visits he took while he was on tour with BTS.
"You have to find your root… and that’s how I started to look at the Korean artists," the band leader was quoted as saying.
RM x SFMOMA will offer an inside look at what inspires the BTS leader.
The museum described his pieces as "a diverse collection spanning disciplines, movements, and artists from around the world, while also comprising one of the most impressive individual holdings of modern and contemporary Korean art."
The visionary musician said he hoped that through the presentation, visitors would experience their own personal art journey.
"I don’t want to prescribe how these works should be seen; whether out of curiosity or study, all perspectives are welcome," the pop superstar was quoted as saying in SFMOMA's news release.
A ‘rare window’
For fans of the pop royalty, the presentation will offer an opportunity to see RM through a different lens as an artist.
There is a very intimate aspect of the exhibition, with RM providing the public "a rare window" into another side of his artistic creativity, the museum noted.
RM recorded guide, written notes
RM recorded an audio guide as part of the exhibition in both English and Korean, with visitors being invited to use their own personal listening devices to access the recording.
The BTS frontman also curated a playlist of in-gallery music.
And to further provide an inside, intimate experience, wall texts handwritten by the BTS frontman and art labels, both in English and Korean, will appear throughout the exhibition.
"This exhibition is an invitation for visitors to trust their own perspective. These artists remind us that art was never separate from everyday life to begin with," noted co-curator Castillo.
"Visitors may enter through RM’s point of view, but they leave confronting their own," said SFMOMA's Hyoeun Kim.
Dig deeper:
SFMOMA said the musician’s collection features works by major figures of Korean modern and contemporary art including Chang Ucchin, Yun Hyong-keun, and Park Rehyun, as well as other prominent contemporary artists based around the world.
RM's pieces will be complemented by SFMOMA's collection from artists including Henri Matisse, Georgia O'Keeffe, Mark Rothko, Yves Klein, and Nam June Paik.
"In the exhibition, works from RM’s collection and SFMOMA’s collection are placed in dialogue, showing how artists from different contexts have explored universal topics related to nature, memory and human existence in their own distinct ways," the museum explained.
Chang Ucchin, The River Scene, 1988; collection of RM; © Chang Ucchin Foundation, courtesy Seoul Auction Yves Klein, Éponge (SE251) (Sponge [SE 251]), 1961; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, bequest of Phyllis C. Wattis; © Artists Rights Society (A
Rooftop Radio K-pop event
As SFMOMA celebrates the collaborative presentation with the K-pop megastar, it will also host a special 21-and-over Rooftop Radio: K-pop gathering.
The Oct. 15 event, which is expected to sell out, invites guests to enjoy "a special night of K-pop music, dance, and community."
The K-pop night will feature DJs CAZU and AyumiPlease and performances hosted by San Francisco-based drag performer and dance instructor, Sassi Fran. Food and drink will be available for purchase.
Non-member ticket prices cost $35. The admission provides access to the entire museum except for the RM x SFMOMA exhibition.
The "Rooftop Radio + RM x SFMOMA Untimed Ticket" can be purchased for a $50 flat rate.
The event is part of the Rooftop Radio outdoor live music and art event series held on the museum's 5th floor.
SFMOMA’s Rooftop Radio: KEXP event held in San Francisco on July 17, 2025. (Photo credit: photo: Barak Shrama)
Global influence
Big picture view:
BTS is widely credited for propelling K-pop onto the global stage and firmly planting the genre in the mainstream market.
For SFMOMA, the wide-reaching influence of the iconic pop band reflects the influence it hopes to have in the art world.
"RM x SFMOMA is closely aligned with our mission to expand global dialogue around art," said Christopher Bedford, Helen and Charles Schwab Director of SFMOMA.
Reaching new audiences, creating bridges
Castillo said art can push boundaries from multiple angles, with this presentation potentially creating opportunities to bring new art enthusiasts into the fold.
"I’ve long been interested in museums expanding beyond their comfort zones, not just in reaching new audiences, but in who is curating as well," Castillo shared. "I’m excited about who this might bring into SFMOMA, including those who may not have felt spoken to by traditional art history frameworks."
RM x SFMOMA has been created as an exhibition that interweaves through time and space as the pieces are placed in dialogue with one another.
And as he and his BTS bandmates have done through their music, RM hopes this special presentation will serve as a connector and a bridge between generations and cultures.
"We live in an age defined by boundaries. This exhibition at SFMOMA reflects those boundaries: between East and West, Korea and America, the modern and the contemporary, the personal and the universal," RM said. "My only hope is that this exhibition can be a small but sturdy bridge for many."
RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me will be on view from Oct. 3 through Feb. 7. (Previews for SFMOMA members are scheduled for Oct. 1-3.)
General admission tickets for adults cost $40 on weekdays, $42 for weekends and holidays. Those 18 and younger are free but still must have a ticket for entry.
SFMOMA is collaborating with BTS's for RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me on view from Oct. 3, 2026 through Feb, 7, 2027. San Francisco, CA 94103
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SFMOMA’s Rooftop Radio: Noise Pop held in San Francisco on July 16, 2026.