Gwangju Biennale Opens in April, Imagining Resistance, Coexistence and Solidarity Through Art

The Gwangju Biennale, the oldest such exhibition in Korea, will open on April 7, 2023 and run until July 9, 2023. The Gwangju Biennale presents its 14th edition this year. The theme is “soft and weak like water.” In particular, it presents a number of works that consider solving social problems through art.

Representatives for the Gwangju Biennale said, “We would like to use water with the potential for conversion and recovery as a metaphor, driving force, and method, and imagine the Earth as a place of resistance, coexistence, solidarity, and care.”

The exhibition consists of four sub-themes: Luminous Halo, Ancestral Voices, Transient Sovereignty, and Planetary Times. Accordingly, the Gwangju Biennale explained that the artists contained their own stories in the work and connected it to reach a global vision.

A total of 79 artists will participate in the 2023 Gwangju Biennale. Half of them have introduced 40 new works and new commissions, so the proportion of new works is high. This is the result of efforts to produce and exhibit new works through prior consultation with artists. In addition, the exhibition space was organized in an eco-friendly method so that the attitude of art in response to the climate crisis could be naturally encountered. The Gwangju Biennale Exhibition Hall, the main exhibition space, has been made into an eco-friendly module structure, and the temporary wall is not painted with white paint and maintains the color of beige plywood. This relates to many works dealing with the climate crisis.

This characteristic seems to reflect the intentions of Sook-kyung Lee, the chief curator of international art at Tate Modern in London who also served as artistic director of the 2023 Gwangju Biennale. Director Lee is the first Korean to take charge of the Gwangju Biennale since 2006 and is also the first Asian curator of Tate Modern. Considering that the Tate Modern has created a different space by utilizing the existing structure of a thermal power plant, the Gwangju Biennale is also expected to present a new experience for visitors.

Regarding the theme, Director Lee said, “It is a story about the power of the weak to beat the strong, which is weak and calm like water, but melts rocks and changes the path of the river for a long time, which is like the weak fighting and resisting the strong to win.” This is in line with the ‘Gwangju spirit’ created by the May 18 Democratic Movement in Gwangju in 1980. It is meant to send a message of hope to those fighting around the world, including resistance to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, protests against the wearing of Iranian hijab obligations, the Black Lives Matter movement, and resistance against the massacre and oppression of Myanmar’s military.

The Pavilions, where foreign countries and institutions participate by expanding the scope of art solidarity at home and abroad, have grown in number. They have increased from three in 2018 and two in 2021 to nine this year. Participating groups include the West Baffin Eskimo Cooperative Limited, an Inuit cooperative in Kinngait, Canada; Framer Framed, a contemporary cultural and artistic organization in Amsterdam, the Netherlands; the Swiss Embassy in Korea; the Digital Art Center (CDA) in Holon, Israel; the Italian Cultural Center in Korea; the Chinese Museum of Art; the Adam Mickiewicz Institute in Poland; and the French Embassy in Korea.

Among them, the Netherlands Pavilion will conduct a mock trial at the Gwangju Museum of Art, viewing the climate crisis caused by mankind as a crime under the title of “Court for International Climate Crimes: Extinction Wars.” In addition, the Canadian Pavilion, which will be held at the Lee Kang-ha Museum of Art, will showcase Inuit artworks. This is the first Inuit art exhibition in Korea. It is expected to be an opportunity to stimulate reflection and introspection on the problems committed by mankind.

The Gwangju Biennale suggests that it is time to go beyond being trapped and isolated due to the COVID-19 pandemic. War, natural disasters, the climate crisis, and economic recessions are occurring in the world. In this period, there are urgent messages that art can tell. Just as something soft and soft like water pierces a rock or permeates other places, so does art. Through their works, artists explore, question, or metaphorically show the problems of human life. As we encounter this, we change unknowingly or change our view of the world through reflection and awakening. The biennial is not a competition, and it does not produce one winner. The Gwangju Biennale instead shares a story about people who can make a positive difference in the world through art.