Jeju Biennale 2022 to show how humans live in symbiosis with other life forms

Jeju Museum of Art, one of the main venues of the Jeju Biennale 2022, on Jeju Island (Jeju Museum of Art)

Jeju Biennale 2022 will take place across Jeju Island in November, addressing the message of living in harmony with all creatures and respecting nature, discourses that rose to the surface in the aftermath of the pandemic.

The third edition of the biennale, helmed by artistic director Park Nam-hee, will evolve around the theme “Flowing Moon, Embracing Land,” taking place at the two main venues, Jeju Museum of Art and Jeju Museum of Contemporary Art, from Nov. 16 to Feb. 12.

The biennale will also include satellite exhibitions at Jeju International Peace Center and Gapado, the fourth-largest island of Jeju Island. Gapado, located 5.5 kilometers off the Jeju coast, is known for its beautiful scenery. Jeju Foundation for Arts and Culture has been running a resident program called Gapado Artist in Residence since 2021, taking over from Hyundai Card that initiated the project in 2012. The residence program offers a space to artists to create works while residing on the island.

“The pandemic triggered us to think that we need to treat other creatures living on Earth equally to humans rather than seeing them as inferior to humans. Jeju Island is visited by many people who want to take a rest and heal exhausted minds. Jeju Island has an energy to cure people,” Kim Han-deul, curator of the biennale, told The Korea Herald.

Some 60 artists and collectives from 16 countries will join the biennale; 40 percent of the artists are from outside of South Korea. Among the participating artists are Kang Yi-yun, Yoon Hyang-ro, and Kim Joo-young from South Korea, Wangechi Mutu from Kenya, Rirkrit Tiravanija from Thailand, Rachel Rose from the US and Zadie Xa from Canada.

Inaugurated in 2017, the biennale was criticized for its haphazard management and issues concerning budget spending. The second biennale was canceled due to the pandemic. The country’s major biennales are the Busan Biennale, scheduled in September, and Gwangju Biennale in April 2023.

By Park Yuna (yunapark@heraldcorp.com)

By Park Yuna(yunapark@heraldcorp.com)