Art does not come into being by itself. It becomes art when the audience experiences the work. The role of the ‘audience’ is therefore essential for the situation in which art takes place. By recreating the audience visiting the exhibition and viewing the art, the ‘experiential situation’ itself becomes a work of art.

No registration required.

Impressions from the Opening Ceremony of the German Pavilion with music and performances by Kunststoffwerkstatt and franz allein with Hwang Mi Young, Nele Ka and Oliver Haussmann, Fabian Feichter, Jeyhun Shin and many more. The celebration was framed by opening speeches and culinary delights.

Kang Ki Jung, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City

Park Yang Woo, PhD, President, Gwangju Biennale Foundation, Photo: Choi Jin Woong

Gitte Zschoch, Secretary General, ifa – Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen, Germany

Christian Landspersky, PhD, PLATFORM Munich

Nicolas Bourriaud, Artistic Director, 15. Gwangju Biennale

Heon Ki Jeong, Horanggasy Creative Studio & Residency, Gwangju

Martin Kasperek, Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, First Secretary, Cultural Affairs

The “Floating Hut” project is a performance in which wood is collected from abandoned houses, turned into musical instruments and played on. Originally grown as a tree, the wood was processed into houses and has thus been put to various uses. In the performance, the wood is dismantled and rebuilt, constantly changing its purpose and finally ending up as an unintentional fragment that highlights the history of the wood itself.

Performance direction: Jehyun Shin
Performance artists: Biju Lee, Sung Yong Hong, Jehyun Shin
Gayageum players: Hyojin Park, Jee Yeon Kim
Haegeum player: Jae in Hwang
Choreographer: Yuri Seo

No registration required.

Herta Feichter is at the center of the project, which takes place via a lecture and subsequent workshops. Through the person Herta Feichter, co-organizer and host at the Longega International Artist House in South Tyrol, the family story is told and the interweaving of unpredictable relationship dynamics is traced. The tension between the fulfillment of predetermined roles and the development of personal freedom is interpreted artistically and culminates in an interactive installation.

No registration required.
The language of the event is Korean.

Art students from Chosun University in Gwangju are invited to a special dialog.

The German artists Stephanie Müller and Klaus Erika Dietl, who are currently working in the city as part of an artist exchange program, will talk and discuss cultural exchange and its role in the international art world with the students and the audience.

No registration required.
The language of the event is German and Korean.

The “Wooden Hut” in the exhibition hall serves as a meeting point for exchange and encounters between artists, guests and the public. The relaxed atmosphere of this place is the starting point for the preparation of drinks out natural ingredients such as elderflower syrup and blackberries, which were collected during a residency in Longega. The aim of the workshop is to produce and taste drinks that are as climate-neutral as possible. At the same time, the hut can be experienced as a communal space.

No registration required.
The language of the event is Korean.

The “Floating Hut” project is a performance in which wood is collected from abandoned houses, turned into musical instruments and played on. Originally grown as a tree, the wood was processed into houses and has thus been put to various uses. In the performance, the wood is dismantled and rebuilt, constantly changing its purpose and finally ending up as an unintentional fragment that highlights the history of the wood itself.

Performance direction: Jehyun Shin
Performance artists: Biju Lee, Sung Yong Hong, Jehyun Shin
Gayageum players: Hyojin Park, Jee Yeon Kim
Haegeum player: Jae in Hwang
Choreographer: Yuri Seo

No registration required.

The Munich-based artists Klaus Erika Dietl and Stephanie Müller seek to engage with others in their artistic practice. Through performances, interventions in public spaces, and public recording sessions, they create contact zones. During their Media Art Residency at the Gwangju Museum of Art, they connected with artists Shin Dowon, PFunk PFama, Gim Girin Sunhwa, Park Sung Eon and Jang Hyeran. In a collaborative improvisation, media art converges with performance, text, and  experimental music, transforming the sewing machine into an instrument. Text fragments glide along silky bass lines, creating a rich tapestry of sound, video and interaction.

The Munich-based artists and musicians Klaus Erika Dietl and Steffi Müller invite sound and music lovers to their Public Playground at the German Pavilion. Individuals of all ages have the opportunity to experiment with sound. Together with the artists, small traces can be recorded. Everybody is welcome, musical experience is not required.

Klaus Erika Dietl and Stephanie Müller continuously seek exchange with others. In recent years, they have held sound and lecture performances and produced radio plays with artists and activists such as Wolfgang Müller (Die Tödliche Doris), Vivien Goldman (The Flying Lizards), Mascha Alechina (Pussy Riot) and Nobel Prize winner Elfriede Jelinek. In 2015, Dietl and Müller formed the international collective ALLIGATOR GOZAIMASU. Currently this fluid sonic body counts 60 members from all over the globe.

Klaus Erika Dietl and Stephanie Müller are based at MEDIENDIENST LEISTUNGSHÖLLE, a platform that functions as a nomadic research and production site. RAGREC, a label for disruptive sounds in text, image, and sound, is also housed there. In addition to records and cassettes, small magaZINEs can be found in their catalogue.

Klaus Erika Dietl and Stephanie Müller regularly open sound, video, and text playgrounds in collaboration with institutions like the Schiffsbau (Zurich, Swizzerland), the Mozarteum (Salzburg, Austria), and the Sammlung Goetz (Munich, Germany).

In the German Pavilion, Klaus Erika Dietl and Stephanie Müller invite the visitors to focus on the “détail qui tue”: the small, decisive sound. At times, it sounds delicate; other times, it scratches, like when someone accidentally nudges the turntable while listening to a record. These sounds blend into the sound tapestry of the surroundings. Lost & found materials and objects such as rubber hoses, discarded packaging materials, and second hand textiles are transformed into sound generators.

Tuning Forks for the Edaphone
Nele Ka, Oliver Haussmann, Fabian Feichter
Activation Performance: A performative connection with the earth

Floating Hut
Jehyun Shin with Biju Lee, Sung Yong Hong and Hyojin Park, Jee Yeon Kim, Jae in Hwang and Yuri Seo
Performance with musical presentation

Campfire
Kunststoffwerkstatt (KWS) and franz allein with Hwang Mi Young
Concert around a campfire with performative storytelling

When we stand with our feet on the ground, there are more living creatures beneath us than there are people in the world. Bacteria, fungi, insects and worms. It is the largest ecosystem in the world and contains many unknown microorganisms. They have amazing abilities and harbor an unknown diversity. We know the earth is alive, but how can we feel it? The shifting of the earth’s plates create a planetary humming that is in the millihertz range and inaudible to humans. Transmitting “Edaphones” put us in contact with the earth’s underworld. These are sculptures inspired by devil’s fiddles, folkloric instruments from Longega. They will be presented and activated for the first time at the Gwangju Biennale. Like tuning forks of the earth, they produce rhythmic sounds ¬– a symbiosis with the “deep biosphere”. The boundaries between human and non-human beings become blurred, creating a connection to the subterranean invisible world.

The “Floating Hut” project is a performance in which wood is collected from abandoned houses, turned into musical instruments and played on. Originally grown as a tree, the wood was processed into houses and has thus been put to various uses. In the performance, the wood is dismantled and rebuilt, constantly changing its purpose and finally ending up as an unintentional fragment that highlights the history of the wood itself.

Performance direction: Jehyun Shin
Performance artists: Biju Lee, Sung Yong Hong, Jehyun Shin
Gayageum players: Hyojin Park, Jee Yeon Kim
Haegeum player: Jae in Hwang
Choreographer: Yuri Seo

One day, someone will talk about an unusual concert by an unusual campfire. The LAGERFEUER concert was a special encounter between the band Kunststoffwerkstatt and singer-songwriter franz allein. A campfire is a meeting place where strangers or friends come together, gaze into the flames and tell stories.

Stories are infinite because they are all part of the great history of mankind. We have forgotten the first campfire, but it taught us to tell stories. We have been lightning campfires and sharing our stories for thousands of years.

Our LAGERFEUER concert is just one of many that are burning around the world at the same time. You are welcome to be part of it.

When we stand with our feet on the ground, there are more living creatures beneath us than there are people in the world. Bacteria, fungi, insects and worms. It is the largest ecosystem in the world and contains many unknown microorganisms. They have amazing abilities and harbor an unknown diversity. We know the earth is alive, but how can we feel it? The shifting of the earth’s plates create a planetary humming that is in the millihertz range and inaudible to humans. Transmitting “Edaphones” put us in contact with the earth’s underworld. These are sculptures inspired by devil’s fiddles, folkloric instruments from Longega. They will be presented and activated for the first time at the Gwangju Biennale. Like tuning forks of the earth, they produce rhythmic sounds ¬– a symbiosis with the “deep biosphere”. The boundaries between human and non-human beings become blurred, creating a connection to the subterranean invisible world.

No registration required.

A well-established tradition of Longega Project is the badminton tournament held on the occasion of an exhibition at the end of the residency. After the official part of the opening, there is an opportunity to meet each other on a sporting level in an exuberant atmosphere. The exchange between the artists leaves the exhibition space and finds a new form through playing together. Before the artists leave again, the sporting spirit is awakened and they sweat together. Visitors are invited to take part. Like the sweat, the prize is also part of the tournament.

Registration required. Please contact us via our instagram account. @germanpaviliongwangjubiennale
The language of the event is German, English and Korean.

Hyesoon Kim’s poetry collection “Autobiography of Death” (죽음의 자서전) is considered as one of the most important international successes of Korean poetry in recent years. The 49 visually stunning poems in the volume are spoken by a dead speaker whose soul, according to Buddhist belief, remains on earth for another 49 days. Translator and philosopher Sool Park talks to the poet about the work and the difficulty of translating the text into German, including the problem of subjectless sentences in Korean, shamanism and philosophy.

No registration required.
The language of the event is Korean and English.

The “Wooden Hut” in the exhibition hall serves as a meeting point for exchange and encounters between artists, guests and the public. The relaxed atmosphere of this place is the starting point for the preparation of drinks out natural ingredients such as elderflower syrup and blackberries, which were collected during a residency in Longega. The aim of the workshop is to produce and taste drinks that are as climate-neutral as possible. At the same time, the hut can be experienced as a communal space.

No registration required.
The language of the event is Korean.

The forest and the diversity of nature can be experienced in the workshop. The children explore the forests around Longega and design their own creative forest landscapes. The importance of forests in urban and rural environments as well as the threats posed by the climate crisis will be addressed.  The use of hanji, traditionally produced Korean paper, and other natural materials creates individual replicas of nature.

No registration required.
The language of the event is Korean.

Art does not come into being by itself. It becomes art when the audience experiences the work. The role of the ‘audience’ is therefore essential for the situation in which art takes place. By recreating the audience visiting the exhibition and viewing the art, the ‘experiential situation’ itself becomes a work of art.

No registration required.

The performance explores the connection between physical endurance and artistic creation through the performance of the American Pacer Test. This stands as a metaphor for the artist’s relentless commitment and resilience. By exploring the relationship between exercising creativity, overcoming adversity and transcending boundaries, parallels are drawn to the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. The artist undergoes a live endurance test while simultaneously performing creative acts to illustrate the symbiotic relationship between physical exertion and artistic innovation.

No registration required.

Open Stage at the 2024 Gwangju Biennale: Poetry Reading Performance

Ha Heres Mina, Kim Liyoun, Kim Sono, Kim So Yeon, Lim Solah, Lee Jenny

Curated by Ha Heres Mina

Supported by This is not a bookstore, Art zoo

The forest and the diversity of nature can be experienced in the workshop. The children explore the forests around Longega and design their own creative forest landscapes. The importance of forests in urban and rural environments as well as the threats posed by the climate crisis will be addressed.  The use of hanji, traditionally produced Korean paper, and other natural materials creates individual replicas of nature.

No registration required.
The language of the event is Korean.

Herta Feichter is at the center of the project, which takes place via a lecture and subsequent workshops. Through the person Herta Feichter, co-organizer and host at the Longega International Artist House in South Tyrol, the family story is told and the interweaving of unpredictable relationship dynamics is traced. The tension between the fulfillment of predetermined roles and the development of personal freedom is interpreted artistically and culminates in an interactive installation.

No registration required.
The language of the event is Korean.