Busan Biennale
The Busan Biennale is a biannual international contemporary art show that integrated three different art events held in the city in 1998: the Busan Youth Biennale, the first biennale of Korea that was voluntarily organized by local artists in 1981; the Sea Art Festival, an environmental art festival launched in 1987 with the sea serving as a backdrop; and the Busan International Outdoor Sculpture Symposium that was first held in 1991. The biennale was previously called the Pusan International Contemporary Art Festival (PICAF) before it launched.
The biennale has its own unique attribute in that it was formed not out of any political logic or need but rather the pure force of local Busan artists’ will and their voluntary participation. Even to this day their interest in Busan's culture and its experimental nature has been the key foundation for shaping the biennale’s identity.
This biennale is the only one like it in the world that was established through an integration of three types of art events such as a Contemporary Art Exhibition, Sculpture Symposium, and Sea Art Festival. The Sculpture Symposium in particular was deemed to be a successful public art event, the results of which were installed throughout the city and dedicated to revitalizing cultural communication with citizens. The networks formed through the event have assumed a crucial role in introducing and expanding domestic art overseas and leading the development of local culture for globalized cultural communication. Founded 38 years ago, the biennale aims to popularize contemporary art and achieve art in everyday life by providing a platform for interchanging experimental contemporary art.
Eulsukdo (Heeyoon Jung)
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관리자 2022-12-19 10:08
Busan Biennale 2022 Exhibition Team
Eulsukdo Island is part of Hadan, a neighborhood in Busan’s Saha District. Its name refers to its abundance of birds (eul) and clear water (suk). An alluvial island formed by a delta where river and seawater mix in the Nakdong estuary, it is a habitat for various forms of life. It is located along the route of migratory birds, with shallow surrounding waters and broad mud flats that led to it being named at one time as East Asia’s premier migratory bird habitat. To ensure its preservation, the Nakdong River migratory bird habitat was designated in 1966 as Natural Monument No. 179, but the environment was severely damaged by industrialization and urban development during the 1980s and 1990s. The number of migratory birds visiting the location fell sharply after the construction of a landfill and a human waste treatment plant, combined with green onion farming by local farmers. In response, the city has worked to restore nature through the Eulsukdo Island ecosystem restoration project.
Today, the island is home to the Museum of Contemporary Art, Busan (MOCA), as well as the Nakdong Estuary Eco Center and the Eulsukdo Migratory Bird Park. Visitors to the Eco Center can rent binoculars to view the migratory birds visiting the island. Additionally, the Eco Center is also the starting and ending point of a cross-country cycling route, with many visitors passing through on their bikes. Those walking through the park at night might come across one of the wild water deer that live in Eulsukdo Island’s broad fields; drivers have to be careful at night, as they sometimes appear on the roads. Stray crabs can sometimes also be encountered throughout the island.