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Preparations for the Pavilion Project of the 13th Gwangju Biennale in 2020 commence
Talks with prestigious institutions in Taiwan, Netherlands, Belgium and others in progress
The Gwangju Biennale Foundation begins preparations for the Gwangju Biennale Pavilion Project in 2020.
On the morning of May 15 at the Polish Embassy located in Jongro-gu, Seoul, the Gwangju Biennale Foundation President Sunjung Kim signed a memorandum of understanding with the Adam Mickiewicz Institute (AMI) Director Krzysztof Olendzki regarding Poland’s participation in the Gwangju Biennale Pavilion Project in 2020.
Named after Poland’s renowned national poet, the AMI is a state cultural institution established under the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage to promote Polish culture abroad. Through their partnership with the Gwangju Biennale, the AMI plans to introduce Polish art institutions and artists to Korea and to produce works and programs that will facilitate engagement with the citizens of Gwangju from an early stage.
Olendzki stated “the Polish Pavilion for the Gwangju Biennale Pavilion Project is as important to us as the Venice Biennale Polish Pavilion.” Olendzki hopes this partnership will encourage Polish art institutions and artists to collaborate with those in Korea and strengthen the position of Poland as a valued partner for Korea.
The signing which took place on the 30th year of the flourishing Korean-Polish diplomatic relations is expected to have a positive influence on Korean-Polish cultural exchange.
The inaugural Gwangju Biennale Pavilion Project was launched at the 12th Gwangju Biennale in 2018. Occupying historic and cultural locations across the city of Gwangju with a series of satellite exhibitions from leading international institutions including Palais de Tokyo, the Helsinki International Artist Programme and the Philippine Contemporary Art Network, it received praise for its independent yet organic connection to the main exhibition and enriching the Biennale experience as a whole.
The Gwangju Biennale Foundation intends to expand participation from international art institutions for the Gwangju Biennale Pavilion Project of the 13th Gwangju Biennale in 2020. Along with AMI (Poland), C-LAB (Taiwan), Artspace (Australia), Rijksakademie (Netherlands), Gluon (Belgium) and others are also in discussion regarding participation in the Gwangju Biennale Pavilion Project in 2020.