Sotheby's has enlisted the help of BIGBANG's T.O.P, whose real name is Choi Seung Hyun, to curate a contemporary art sale in Hong Kong. The upcoming auction, titled "#TTTOP," is scheduled to happen on Oct. 3.
Sotheby's Hong Kong announced the good news on their official website on July 25, Monday. It marks the first that the famed auction house has collaborated with a young collector as curator.
Sotheby's believed T.O.P has an undeniable influence on the younger generation in Asia with his immense passion for music, art, and design. Interestingly, the 28-year-old rapper have accumulated more than 80 artworks to date.
In an accompanying interview with Sotheby's, the K-pop idol revealed that his interest in art origination from his childhood. He proceeds to reveal that his close relatives taught him to draw and paint, but as he grew up, he figured out how to paint things himself as he favored looking at art and immersing himself in it.
"I was raised in a very artistic household," T.O.P explained. "All the women in my family, including my mother, majored in art. They were all either artists or art teachers. The Korean modern masters Kim Whanki and Lee Insung are both my blood relatives."
A portion of the proceeds raised from "#TTTOP's" auction will be donated to The Asian Cultural Council. It is a non-profit organization engaged in cultivating economically struggling young artists in Asia.
In a separate interview, T.O.P vowed to continue engaging himself in such projects and charity work in the future, in hopes of helping talented Asian artists work in a more stable environment. It is said that the singer-songwriter has spent a year preparing for the eagerly anticipated charity auction event.
"This event will be closer to a donation project, and not the usual kind of auction where art collectors display their collections to the crowd and sell them," an official from YG Entertainment told Yonhap News Agency. "Sotheby's will donate part of the profits and T.O.P will participate without guaranteed payment."
Further details about the contemporary art sale will be released in August. Nonetheless, a 44-second teaser video of the upcoming event began streaming on the web. Check it out below: