In this Korean name, the family name is Hong.
Hong Ra-hee
Born (1945-07-15) 15 July 1945 (age 78)
Jeonju, North Jeolla, South Korea
EducationSeoul National University
OccupationBusinesswoman
SpouseLee Kun-hee
ChildrenLee Jae-yong
Lee Boo-jin
Lee Seo-hyun
Lee Yoon-hyung†
Parent(s)Hong Jin-ki (1917–1986) (father)
Kim Yoon-nam (1924–2013) (mother)
Korean name
Hangul
홍라희
Hanja
洪羅喜
Revised RomanizationHong Ra-hui
McCune–ReischauerHong Ra-hŭi

Hong Ra-hee (born 15 July 1945) is a South Korean billionaire businesswoman who is the director of Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art.[1] She is the widow of Lee Kun-hee, who was the richest person in South Korea. She is known as the most powerful art collector in South Korea.[2]

Career

Hong graduated from Seoul National University. She majored in Applied Arts.[3] She is the co-founder of Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, which she has built with her husband in 2004. Hong's collection includes Lee Ufan, Do-ho Suh, Whanki Kim, Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Andy Warhol.

Hong began her career at JoongAng Ilbo Publishing from 1975 to 1980.

She served as a Chairperson of Samsung Arts and Cultural Foundation since 1995.

Family

Her daughters are joint presidents of Samsung C&T Corporation, while her daughter Lee Seo-hyun oversees Samsung's fashion division, and her other daughter Lee Boo-jin oversees the resort division, which included the Everland Resort. Her father Hong Jin-ki was chairman of JoongAng Ilbo, and also an identified Chinilpa. Her brother Hong Seok-hyun is the ex-CEO of JoongAng Media Group. It is now run by Hong Jeongdo, Hong's nephew.

Her ex-daughter-in-law was Lim Se-ryung, the daughter of Daesang Group's chairman Lim Chang-Wook. Lim was married to Hong's son Lee Jae-yong in 1998 and divorced in 2009.[4]

References

  1. ^ "Hong Ra-hee makes comeback as Leeum's director". The Korea Herald. 2011-03-29.
  2. ^ "홍라희 관장은 누구?...미술계 영향력 1위, '행복한 눈물' 사건 겪기도". 국제신문. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  3. ^ "30대 그룹 회장 부인, 여성 회장 이화여대 출신 13명으로 최다". JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean). 2007-01-04. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  4. ^ "삼성이재용 전무 임세령씨 파경 내막 ＆ 임씨 친정어머니 단독 인터뷰". woman.donga.com (in Korean). 2009-03-24. Retrieved 2020-03-01.