Gwangju Biennale – Burning Down the House

Abstract

Lubaina Himid is one of over 100 artists selected for the 10th Gwangju Biennale – Burning Down the House
Burning Down the House explores the process of burning and transformation, a cycle of obliteration and renewal witnessed throughout history. Evident in aesthetics, historical events, and an increasingly rapid course of redundancy and renewal in commercial culture, the Biennale reflects on this process of, often violent, events of destruction or self-destruction – burning the home one occupies – followed by the promise of the new and the hope for change.
The theme highlights the capacity of art to critique the establishment through an exploration that includes the visual, sound, movement and dramatic performance. At the same time, it recognises the possibility and impossibility within art to deal directly and concretely with politics.
Drowned Orchard Secret Boatyard engages with the problem of how to preserve the traditions of South Korean culture while managing the rapid changes brought about by the introduction of and leadership in new technology. It argues that increased global connection brings with it the challenges of leaky borders.