Busan Biennale 2018 : divided we stand

Titled Divided We Stand, the 9th Busan Biennale in South Korea focused on the theme of divided territories caused by war, conflict, or colonization, and also considered individuals’ feelings of separation, anxiety, fear, or paranoia that result from such geopolitical traumas. Featuring sixty-six artists and artist teams from thirty-four countries, the biennial was organized under the direction of Cristina Ricupero and Jörg Heiser, with the assistance of guest curator Gahee Park, and took place at the newly built Museum of Contemporary Art Busan (MoCA Busan) and the brutalist-style former Bank of Korea in Busan. The two venues reflected the biennial’s theme: work shown at MOCA Busan examined past and current divisions left by the Cold War era, while the second venue comprised work that reflected on our current situation through the lens of science fiction.

This comprehensive catalogue includes in-depth essays on the theme of the biennial from Boris Groys, Mohammed Hanif, Heonik Kwon, Nina Power, Hito Steyerl, and Wladimir Velminski, as well as individual artist pages and photographs from the exhibition.

Artists: Basel Abbas & Ruanne Abou-Rahme, Bani Abidi, Chantal Akerman, Dora Longo Bahia, Maja Bajević, Khaled Barakeh, Yael Bartana, Jean-Luc Blanc, Oscar Chan Yik Long, Onejoon Che, Mina Cheon, Chin Cheng-Te, Sunah Choi, Phil Collins, Christoph Dettmeier, Dias & Riedweg, Smadar Dreyfus, Eva Grubinger, Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige, Ramin & Rokni Haerizadeh and Hesam Rahmanian, Flaka Haliti, Andy Hope 1930, Hsu Chia-Wei, Im Youngzoo, Joo Hwang, Yunsun Jung, Nikita Kadan, Wanuri Kahiu, Amar Kanwar, Kiluanji Kia Henda, Hayoun Kwon, Oliver Laric, Minwhee Lee & Yun Choi, Gabriel Lester and Jonas Lund, Minouk Lim, Laura Lima & Zé Carlos Garcia, Lin + Lam, Liu Ding, Dora Longo Bahia, Marko Lulić, Fabian Marti, Truwant & Rodet and Eun Kyung Park, Augustin Maurs, Metahaven, Nástio Mosquito, Henrike Naumann, Marcel Odenbach, Melik Ohanian, Ferhat Özgür, Kelvin Kyung Kun Park, Susan Philipsz, Adrian Piper, Min Jeong Seo, Bruno Serralongue, Tayfun Serttas, Hito Steyerl, Jan Svenungsson, Yuichiro Tamura, Javier Téllez, The Propeller Group, Suzanne Treister, Lars von Trier, Nomeda & Gediminas Urbonas, Jane & Louise Wilson, Ming Wong, Ulrich Wüst, Yoo Yeun Bok & Kim Yongtae, Zhang Peili