Busan Museum of Art During the Renovation: What's Closed, What's Open, and Whether to Go

The Busan Museum of Art sits right beside BEXCO, one subway stop from Centum City. On paper it's the obvious indoor hour on this side of Haeundae. Right now that needs a closer look. The main building is shut for a long renovation, and only part of the site is taking visitors. So is the Busan Museum of Art open during the renovation? Partly, and whether the open part is worth your trip depends on what you like. Below is how I'd decide, based on the official tourism portal and the subway operator's station pages.

Aerial view of the Busan Museum of Art buildings and lawn in Haeundae

What's closed and what's still open

Visit Busan's page for the museum carries a plain warning. The main building will stay closed for a considerable time because of interior renovations. It doesn't give a reopening date, and I won't guess one.

What stays open is the annex, the Space Lee Ufan. Visit Busan lists it as open Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 18:00. The Korean version of the page adds that the last entry is at 17:30, so don't turn up at quarter to six.

The closing rules are the ones to watch. The museum closes every Monday and on 1 January. If a Monday falls on a public holiday, it closes on the following day instead. So on a long weekend, check the calendar before you assume Tuesday is an ordinary opening day.

Admission to the annex is listed as charged, but Visit Busan doesn't print the amount. I'd rather leave the fee blank than repeat an old figure. The museum's own website, art.busan.go.kr, is where Visit Busan points you, and the annex also has its own inquiry line on +82-51-740-2603.

What the Space Lee Ufan actually is

The museum opened in 1998, and Visit Busan presents it as the public museum that represents contemporary art in Busan. The annex is given over to one artist. Lee Ufan is one of the senior figures of Korean contemporary art — Visit Busan sums up his work as an art of relationships.

In practice that means spare rooms and only a handful of objects. Visit Busan's feature on the museum shows steel plates set against natural stones, and a canvas paired with a stone. Two of the titles shown come from his Relatum series. Visit Busan also notes audio guides in Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese, which matters more than usual here. Work this quiet is easier to read with some explanation in your ear.

A white gallery room with two small colour paintings on the wall

Here I'll take a side. If minimal art leaves you cold, the annex is a short and slightly puzzling stop. There's no big mixed collection to wander through while the main building is shut. You're paying to spend time with one artist's ideas, and nothing else is on offer.

If that idea appeals, though, the renovation arguably helps. With the main halls closed, the annex is the whole visit, and you can give it your full attention instead of squeezing it in at the end.

Getting there on Line 2

The station is named for both of its neighbours. On the subway map it's BEXCO (Busan Museum of Art), and it sits on Line 2 between Dongbaek and Centum City. From Haeundae Station it's two stops toward Centum City.

Visit Busan gives Exit 5 and a five-minute walk. The Busan Transportation Corporation's exit list agrees, naming the museum at Exit 5. The same list puts the BEXCO exhibition centre at Exit 9, and the BRT bus transfer centre at Exit 7. If you're pairing the museum with a show at BEXCO, those two exits are the ones to know.

For the fare and the card you'll need at the gate, see my transit card guide.

If you're driving, Visit Busan lists parking from 09:00 to 19:00. It's charged, and again no rate is printed. Visit Busan's accessibility list includes a ramp, an elevator, wheelchair rental, accessible toilets, accessible parking and braille guidance.

The house rules are short. Keep your voice down, check whether photos are allowed before you raise a phone, and leave food, drink and pets outside.

A rust-coloured steel plate standing beside a round stone on the museum lawn

The garden outside

The museum grounds include an outdoor sculpture garden, according to Visit Busan's feature. A separate Visit Busan art route suggests using the outdoor sculpture park or the annex, depending on the renovation schedule when you go.

Treat the garden as a maybe — not a promise. Building work can fence off parts of a site, and nothing I can find says which paths are open on a given day. If it is open, a slow lap of the lawn makes a calm start or finish to the annex.

If BEXCO has an event on that day

This is the part that's easy to overlook. In weeks when BEXCO hosts a big event, the restaurants around my hotel fill up, and my guests end up heading to the dining floors at Shinsegae instead.

The museum shares its station with that exhibition centre, so plan lunch before you set out. If your visit falls in an event week, eat early or late, or go straight to Shinsegae at Centum City, one stop along. My guide to Shinsegae Centum City and Spa Land covers the building, and my food guide for the BEXCO area covers the places you can walk to. If the event is the reason you're in town, my BEXCO guide deals with the logistics.

APEC Naru Park along the Suyeong River beside the Centum City skyline

A free option nearby: APEC Naru Park

If you'd rather not pay for a single-artist gallery, there's a free outdoor alternative close by. APEC Naru Park runs along the bank of the Suyeong River in Haeundae-gu. Visit Busan says entry costs nothing and the park never closes, all year round.

It's a small city park, but it packs in a walking path, a jogging course, a sculpture park and tables where you can sit with a book. Visit Busan gives two ways in. One is Exit 12 of Centum City Station and a 13-minute walk. The other is bus 139 to the Busan Cinema Center stop, then seven minutes on foot. That stop is also the way to the Busan Cinema Center, so the two fit into one easy afternoon.

The trade-off is the weather — a riverside park does nothing for you in the rain, while the annex keeps you dry.

My answer

Go to the Space Lee Ufan if you already like minimal or conceptual art, or if you're at BEXCO anyway and have an hour to spare. Take the audio guide, arrive before 17:30, and avoid Mondays and the day after a Monday holiday.

Skip it for now if you wanted the full museum. With the main building closed and no reopening date published, a special trip across town doesn't make sense. APEC Naru Park is the free substitute on a dry day, and Shinsegae is the dry one on a wet day.

For a room near BEXCO and the museum, my hotel takes direct bookings at korea-busan.com.

Facts checked on 30 September 2026. Line 2 station order and BEXCO Station exits: Busan Transportation Corporation (humetro.busan.kr). Museum closure, annex hours, fees, access, facilities and APEC Naru Park: Visit Busan (visitbusan.net). Photo: Busan Tourism Archive (visitbusan.net), KOGL Type 1

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