Cho Na-young, 43, the third generation of the Hansol Group Oner family, was recently appointed deputy director of Museum SAN, an art museum run by the Hansol Cultural Foundation. Deputy Director Cho is the eldest daughter of Cho Dong-gil, chairman of Hansol Group.
Chairman Cho Dong-gil is the son of the late Lee In-hee, former adviser to Hansol Group and eldest daughter of the late Lee Byung-chul, founder of Samsung. Since splitting from Samsung Group in 1993, Hansol Group has been overseen by Chairman Cho, who now has overall responsibility for group management.
After majoring in art history in the United States, Deputy Director Cho built her career as a curator at Samsung's Leeum Museum of Art. She later moved to Museum SAN, served as Head of Team and other roles, and was recently promoted to deputy director.
Museum SAN is a pastoral-style museum located in Wonju, Gangwon Province, and is a complex cultural space that emphasizes harmony between nature and art. The museum, in connection with the paper industry of Hansol Paper, a core affiliate of Hansol Group, has operated the Paper Gallery, a paper museum, since 1997. It then expanded its exhibition scope by opening the Cheongjo Gallery in 2013.
Museum SAN is currently run by Deputy Director Cho and her mother, Director An Young-ju. Director An is said to oversee the museum's mid- to long-term strategy and major exhibition direction, while Deputy Director Cho handles practical operations and exhibition planning. It is a so-called "mother-daughter management" system.
Deputy Director Cho is not involved in the management of Hansol Group. However, her spouse, Han Kyung-rok, CEO of Hansol Paper, and her younger sibling, Cho Sung-min, executive vice president of Hansol Holdings, are involved in group management.
In business circles, this division of roles is interpreted as reflecting a traditional structure in which men handle corporate management while women take charge of culture and the arts. Deputy Director Cho's appointment is also seen as a personnel move made within this trend. Within the Samsung family as well, Honorary Director Hong Ra-hee, the wife of the late Chairman Lee Kun-hee, has overseen the operation of the Leeum Museum of Art.
A business community official said, "The participation of the Oner family in culture and the arts contributes to strengthening the corporate image and brand identity," and noted, "As third-generation figures with expertise get involved, the strategic importance of cultural ventures is growing even more."