From the 17th to October 20th, 'Seeing in the Dark' at Busan Museum of Contemporary Art, Modern and Contemporary History Museum, Hanseong 1918, Choryangjae
Opening ceremony at 5 p.m. on August 16th at Busan Museum of Contemporary Art... Mayor Park, Minister of Culture, Gwangju Mayor to attend
Busan Metropolitan City will host the '2024 Busan Biennale' under the theme 'Seeing in the Dark' for 65 days from August 17 to October 20.
The 'Busan Biennale' is co-hosted biennially by the city and the Busan Biennale Organizing Committee (Chairman: Mayor Park Heongjoon). It began in 1981 as the 'Busan Youth Biennale' and was renamed to its current title in 2000 with the establishment of the foundation.
The 2022 Busan Biennale was recognized as a 'well-made exhibition' for its stable operation and solid planning, and was featured as one of the world's top 10 exhibitions by the British art magazine 'Frieze'.
This year's exhibition will open in August for the first time in its history to invigorate 'summer city Busan' and actively attract tourists during the holiday season.
It will be held at four venues in the original downtown area: ▲Busan Museum of Contemporary Art ▲Busan Modern and Contemporary History Museum ▲HanSeong1918 ▲Choryangjae.
The exhibition's theme, 'Seeing in the Dark', proposes reimagining the human position within today's 'darkness'. It symbolizes a new perspective on the current era.
This background stems from the intention to incorporate the concepts of 'pirate utopia', an early form of autonomous anarchist society, and 'doryang', a Buddhist term for a place separated from the secular world, into the exhibition. The theme reflects the curatorial intent to explore various spiritual worlds and cultures, including these two concepts as spaces of community and liberation, and to reimagine the spaces and worlds required by our times.
For the first time in Busan Biennale's history, the exhibition will be directed by co-artistic directors Vera Mey and Philippe Pirotte, featuring 78 artists (teams) from 36 countries.
In addition to the exhibition, a variety of collaborative programs will be presented, such as ▲'Pirate Panel' ▲'Sound Project' ▲'Artist Talk', combining different genres.
Major domestic artists participating include Song Cheon, Yoon Seoknam, and Hong Ihyunsook, as well as Busan-born artists such as Bang Jeonga, Kim Kyunghwa, Lee Gayoung, and Koo Hyunjoo.
International participants include Ishikawa Mao, Pratchaya Phinthong, and a diverse group of artists from Asia and non-Western countries.
This year's biennale will also be held under the joint title 'Korea Art Festival (9.1. - 11.)', in connection with the 'Gwangju Biennale', 'Seoul Art Week', and others. In April, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, local governments, and other institutions declared a joint effort to integrate their art events under the Korea Art Festival for a successful outcome.
During this period, combined tickets for Busan and Gwangju Biennale will be available at a 30% discount compared to the regular price, and a package with Busan Biennale and Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) will offer a 30% discount on admission and 5-40% time-based discounts on train tickets.
In addition, ongoing events such as early bird ticket discounts will be held before the exhibition opens to provide more benefits to visitors.
For more details, please visit the Busan Biennale official website.
The opening ceremony for this event will take place at 5 p.m. on August 16 at the outdoor special stage of the Busan Museum of Contemporary Art.
Mayor Park Heongjoon, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Mayor of Gwangju, and others will attend to celebrate the opening.
Busan-based band Ska Wakers will perform a celebratory stage, and visitors will have the opportunity to hear explanations from the exhibition directors and meet participating artists.
Mayor Park Heongjoon stated, "The strength of cities that attract global tourists lies in 'culture', and a high-level cultural environment is essential for a 'global hub city.' The city will continue to support the Busan Biennale so that it can establish itself as a world-class exhibition representing Korea and contribute to realizing Busan as a global cultural tourism city."
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