[REPORTERSNOTEBOOK] Taiwan-China row at Gwangju Biennale could have been avoided

The Taiwan Pavilion dispute at the 16th Gwangju Biennale exposed weaknesses in the Gwangju Biennale Foundation’s staffing and management system in Jeonnam-Gwangju Special Metropolitan City last weekend. The foundation’s short-term staffing model left core work, international coordination and pavilion administration vulnerable, while the Taiwan naming issue triggered Chinese withdrawals. Foundation President Youn Bum-mo apologized and said the pavilion system needs an overhaul. The controversy also echoed the foundation’s 2023 cancellation of the Park Seo-bo Art Prize after artist protests.

The Gwangju Biennale has more than 10 billion won in public funding and related spending committed to each edition, and its 2026 operating budget was about 14.3 billion won, excluding a separate 1 billion won for basic assets.

A foundation employee said the biennale’s core working staff numbers only around 30, with the rest on short-term contracts, and said continuity in core work is cut off every edition.

The pavilion project expanded from nine in 2023 to 31 in 2024, while the department responsible for pavilion administration lost five of its six contract workers last year.

In 2023, the foundation abolished the Park Seo-bo Art Prize one month after its first award ceremony after protests from local artists, and the prize had been funded by Park’s GIZI Foundation with a $1 million donation.

Published Sep 12, 2026 7:00 am KST

Updated Sep 12, 2026 9:26 am KST

Diplomatic dispute puts Gwangju Biennale's management under scrutiny

Art pieces by Chinese artists are seen unattended at the Ha Jungwoong Museum of Art in Jeonnam-Gwangju Special Metropolitan City, Sept. 3, after Chinese artists withdrew from the pavilion amid cross-strait tensions. Newsis

JEONNAM-GWANGJU SPECIAL METROPOLITAN CITY — The "Taiwan Pavilion" dispute that overshadowed the opening of the 16th Gwangju Biennale last weekend wasn't a mere display of diplomatic tension between China and Taiwan that erupted randomly at an art event.

It laid bare a deep-running problem with one of Asia’s best-known contemporary art event organizers and raised a question: Is the organizer's management system working?

The biennale, launched in 1995 in the spirit of the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising in 1980, has grown into Korea’s largest and Asia’s oldest and best contemporary art biennale. It has more than 10 billion won ($7.44 million) in public funding and related spending committed to each edition. Its 2026 operating budget was set at about 14.3 billion won, excluding a separate 1 billion won for replenishing its basic assets.

It seems that the problem boils down to its precarious staffing model. A team manager-level Gwangju Biennale Foundation employee on a short-term contract told The Korea Times that the biennale’s core working staff numbers only around 30, with the rest on short-term contracts.

“As so many employees work on short-term contracts, continuity in core work is cut off every edition,” the employee said on condition of anonymity. “There is no accumulated operational know-how or legacy from 16 editions.”

Reliance on project-based staffing is not unusual for a large-scale event held once every two years. But the foundation’s reliance appears to extend beyond such short-term functions to roles involving international coordination, pavilion administration and core institutional work — areas where continuity, specialized knowledge and long-term relationships are essential.

The Taiwan Pavilion dispute offered a stark illustration of the risks created by that structure.

The foundation had initially referred to the participant as the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, as registered. However, in response to objections from Taiwanese artists and officials, the foundation later approved the Taiwan Pavilion designation, only for Chinese participants to withdraw in protest.

Protesters hold a rally protesting the Gwangju Biennale's approval of the name “Taiwan Pavilion” and calling on the foundation to respect the "One China" policy, in front of the Gwangju Biennale exhibition hall in Jeonnam-Gwangju Special Metropolitan City, on the biennale's press opening, Sept. 4. Newsis

The problem was not simply that the issue involved the politically charged question of Taiwan. It was that an organization running a global cultural platform appeared ill-prepared to recognize, anticipate and manage diplomatic consequences of naming and representing institutional agreements.

Foundation President Youn Bum-mo apologized during the press conference and acknowledged that the pavilion system needs an overhaul. He said the distinction between national and institutional pavilions “does not seem to have much meaning” and that the number of applicants had become difficult for the foundation to manage.

That admission is notable given that the pavilion project, launched in 2018 as a separate initiative from the main exhibition, expanded rapidly from nine in 2023 to 31 in 2024.

However, the department responsible for pavilion administration lost five of its six contract workers last year, leaving scant handover material, according to local news reports. New contract staff were hurriedly assigned in March and April, among whom two were left to handle communications and administrative work involving 27 countries and institutions this year.

Visitors view works on display during the press preview for the 16th Gwangju Biennale at the Gwangju Biennale Exhibition Hall in Jeonnam-Gwangju Special Metropolitan City, Sept. 4. Newsis

Apparently, the Taiwan pavilion scandal wasn't the only incident revealing the foundation's lack of professionalism.

The issue came amid another damaging controversy involving the biennale’s poor administration.

In 2023, the foundation abolished the newly established Park Seo-bo Art Prize only a month after its first award ceremony, in response to protests from local artists who argued that naming the prize after the “dansaekhwa” master did not reflect the biennale’s founding democratic spirit.

Critics argued that Park had conformed to the military regime of the 1970s and turned a blind eye to the pro-democracy movement in Gwangju, making his name ill-suited to the biennale prize.

Gwangju Biennale abolishes new Park Seo-bo Art Prize after first edition

The prize was funded by Park’s GIZI Foundation, which donated $1 million, and the donation was also meant to award winners for the next nine editions.

The cancellation underscored a recurring failure to anticipate how decisions made in boardrooms would be received by artists in Gwangju, where the biennale’s legitimacy is inseparable from the region’s democratic legacy.

Visitors to the 16th Gwangju Biennale gather outside a venue where the opening ceremony was to take place, Sept. 4. Newsis

This year’s main exhibition, themed “You Must Change Your Life,” takes its title from Rainer Maria Rilke and examines transformation across individual, collective and planetary scales. The question now appears to apply as urgently to the foundation itself.

A biennale’s standing is not secured only by internationally known artists, ambitious curators or a large budget. It also depends on whether the institution can remember its own agreements, understand the political terrain in which it operates and take responsibility when its systems fail.

上周末，第16届光州双年展台湾馆争议暴露了光州双年展基金会在全南光州特别都市的人员配备和管理体系的缺陷。基金会的短期人员配置模式导致核心工作、国际协调和展馆管理面临风险，而台湾馆的命名权争议则引发了中国艺术家的退出。基金会主席尹范模就此道歉，并表示展馆体系需要彻底改革。此次争议也与基金会此前因艺术家抗议而取消2023年朴叙甫艺术奖一事遥相呼应。

光州双年展每届都投入超过 100 亿韩元的公共资金和相关支出，其 2026 年的运营预算约为 143 亿韩元，还不包括用于基本资产的 10 亿韩元。

一位基金会工作人员表示，双年展的核心工作人员只有大约 30 人，其余人员都是短期合同工，并表示每届双年展的核心工作都会中断。

展馆项目从 2023 年的 9 个增加到 2024 年的 31 个，而负责展馆管理的部门去年失去了 6 名合同工中的 5 名。

2023 年，在当地艺术家抗议后，朴叙甫基金会在首届颁奖典礼一个月后取消了朴叙甫艺术奖。该奖项由朴叙甫的 GIZI 基金会捐赠 100 万美元设立。

发布于2026年9月12日 上午7:00（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年9月12日上午9:26（韩国标准时间）

外交争端使光州双年展的管理受到审查

9月3日，在全南光州特别广域市河正雄美术馆，中国艺术家的作品无人看管。此前，由于海峡两岸关系紧张，中国艺术家撤离了该馆。

全南光州特区——上周末笼罩着第16届光州双年展开幕式的“台湾馆”争议，并非仅仅是中国和台湾之间外交紧张局势在一次艺术活动中随机爆发的表现。

它揭露了亚洲最知名的当代艺术活动组织者之一存在的深层次问题，并提出了一个问题：该组织者的管理系统是否有效？

该双年展于1995年创办，秉承1980年5月18日光州民主化运动的精神，现已发展成为韩国规模最大、亚洲历史最悠久、最负盛名的当代艺术双年展。每届双年展的公共资金及相关支出超过100亿韩元（约合744万美元）。其2026年的运营预算约为143亿韩元，另拨出10亿韩元用于补充基本资产。

问题似乎在于其不稳定的人员配置模式。一位与光州双年展基金会签订短期合同的团队经理级员工告诉《韩国时报》，双年展的核心工作人员只有大约30人，其余人员均为短期合同工。

“由于很多员工都是短期合同工，核心工作的连续性每届都会中断，”这位不愿透露姓名的员工表示，“16届以来，公司并没有积累任何运营经验或经验传承。”

对于每两年举办一次的大型活动而言，依赖项目制人员配备并不罕见。但该基金会的依赖似乎不仅限于此类短期职能，还延伸到国际协调、展馆管理和核心机构工作等岗位——这些领域都需要持续性、专业知识和长期合作关系。

台湾馆争议鲜明地展现了该建筑结构所带来的风险。

基金会最初将参展方称为国立台湾美术馆，并已注册。然而，在遭到台湾艺术家和官员的反对后，基金会后来批准了台湾馆的命名，但随后中国大陆参展方以抗议为由退出了展览。

9月4日，在光州双年展媒体开幕当天，抗议者在全南光州特别广域市光州双年展展馆前举行集会，抗议光州双年展批准将展馆命名为“台湾馆”，并呼吁主办方尊重“一个中国”政策。（纽西斯通讯社）

问题不仅仅在于该议题涉及台湾这一政治敏感问题。更在于，一个运营全球文化平台的组织似乎并未做好充分准备，去认识、预见和应对命名和代表机构协议所带来的外交后果。

基金会主席尹范模在新闻发布会上致歉，并承认展馆制度需要改革。他表示，国家馆和机构馆之间的区别“似乎意义不大”，而且申请数量过多，基金会已难以管理。

考虑到该展馆项目于 2018 年作为一项独立于主展览的计划启动，并迅速从 2023 年的 9 个展馆扩展到 2024 年的 31 个展馆，这一承认就显得尤为引人注目。

然而，据当地新闻报道，负责展馆管理的部门去年失去了六名合同工中的五名，几乎没有留下任何交接资料。今年三四月份匆忙安排了新的合同工，其中只有两人负责处理涉及27个国家和机构的沟通和行政工作。

9月4日，在全罗南道光州特别广域市光州双年展展览馆举行的第16届光州双年展媒体预展上，参观者正在观看展出的作品。（Newsis）

显然，台湾馆丑闻并不是唯一暴露该基金会缺乏专业精神的事件。

此事发生之际，正值双年展因管理不善而引发另一场破坏性争议之时。

2023 年，该基金会在首届颁奖典礼仅一个月后便废除了新设立的朴叙甫艺术奖，原因是当地艺术家抗议称，以“单画”大师的名字命名该奖项并不体现双年展的创立民主精神。

批评人士认为，朴正熙顺从了 20 世纪 70 年代的军政府，对光州的民主运动视而不见，因此他的名字与双年展奖项格格不入。

光州双年展在首届之后取消了朴叙甫艺术奖。

该奖项由朴槿惠的GIZI基金会资助，该基金会捐赠了100万美元，这笔捐款也旨在奖励未来九届的获奖者。

此次取消凸显了一个反复出现的失误，即未能预料到董事会做出的决定会如何受到光州艺术家的欢迎。在光州，双年展的合法性与该地区的民主遗产密不可分。

9月4日，第16届光州双年展的参观者聚集在原定开幕式举办场地外。（Newsis）

今年的主题展览以“你必须改变你的人生”为题，借用了里尔克的诗句，探讨了个人、集体和全球层面的变革。如今，这个问题似乎也同样迫切地适用于基金会自身。

双年展的地位并非仅取决于国际知名艺术家、雄心勃勃的策展人或雄厚的预算。它还取决于机构能否恪守自身承诺，理解其所处的政治环境，并在自身体系出现问题时承担责任。