More Infomation

Gwangju Biennale is an international contemporary art fair held every other year. The event was launched to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Independence Day of Korea in 1995 and the 'Year of Art', and promoting the art traditions of Gwangju. Its aim is to disseminate the democratic spirit of Gwangju into a new culture, since the Gwangju May 18th Democratic Movement, known worldwide as Korea's pro-democracy resistance movement.

The Gwangju Biennale is held in the biennale pavilion and the Jungoe Park area for a period of around three months. The city of culture and democracy hosts a worldwide art and culture festival that exchanges contemporary cultures and future visions of Korea, Asia and the world.

Every time Gwangju Biennale is held, a theme is selected to reflect the world's society and culture, the current issues and future-oriented values. The biennale is composed of the international contemporary art festival along with international academic conferences and special accompanying programs.

The first Biennale, with the theme of Beyond the Border in 1995, the works of 90artists from 50 countries were successfully exhibited, drawing about 2million spectators from home and abroad. It consisted of thirteen exhibitions including the main exhibition, special exhibitions, and commemorative exhibitions, along with side events such as folk dance, music, and plays. Since then, the Biennale has been held 7 times with the themes of 'Unmapping Earth' in 1997, 'Man and Space' in 2000, 'P_A_U_S_E' in 2002, 'A grain of Dust a Drop of Water' in 2004, 'Fever Variations' in 2006 and 'On the Road / Position Papers / Insertions' in 2008, serving as a bridge for the arts and cultures from home and abroad and becoming one of the world's top 3 biennales following Venice and Sao Paulo.