CHEONGJU CRAFT BIENNIAL 2021 – Cheongju – South Korea

• International Biennial

• September 8 – October 17, 2021 •

France, represented by Ateliers d’Art de France, will be the guest of honor at the 12th edition of the Cheongju International Craft Biennale, in South Korea, from September 8 to October 17, 2021. Florence Lemiegre is among the artists who will represent France.

An installation of 17 ceramic sculptures from its collection “Les Culbutos – Chamarrés” was selected by a jury composed of the Korean artistic directors of this event. The jury members were seduced by her innovative and contemporary proposal, her know-how and the relevance of her artistic response to the editorial line of this edition: “Tools for Conviviality”.

Works made in unique pieces in his art workshop Jules Verne in Normandy, playing on materials, colors and shapes, allowing to gather, to renew and to imagine new “tools” of social and human link in this current context where the planet has been tested in recent months, isolating human beings and partitioning exchanges.

The theme “Tools for Conviviality” of this new 2021 edition is inspired by a book published in 1973 by the Austrian philosopher Ivan Illich and his radical critique of the world where tools dominate humans and the need to limit the growth of these tools to restore humanity. “In this landmark text, Ivan Illich amplifies and radicalizes his critique of industrial society. Denouncing the servitude born of productivism, the gigantism of tools, the cult of growth and material success, he opposes to the “threat of a technocratic apocalypse” the “vision of a convivial society”. It is only by the rediscovery of the space of the good life, which Illich called conviviality, that societies will become more human. “. The biennial will offer artists and the general public a window to reflect on the notion of responsible use of tools in order to live in an emerging symbiotic society where humanity and tools forge an adequate relationship.

Florence lemiegre explains in a few guidelines her artistic intention for this installation “Plural Choreography”: different, unique and distinguishable Culbutos Chamarrés that oscillate next to each other and intermingle in a choreography of the senses to build another scene. That of a joyful and balanced “plural” unity.

From May 25, 2021, the artist’s works will embark on a long journey from her Jules Verne art workshop in Normandy that will take them after a two-month boat trip to Cheongju in South Korea.

Bringing together more than 3,000 artists from 60 countries and attracting more than 350,000 visitors, the Cheongju Biennial is one of the major events devoted to contemporary art in the world. For this 2021 edition and despite the Covid, 1,000 artists from 40 different countries will participate in the Cheongju Biennale of Contemporary Crafts. Cheongju and its region, with its rich architectural, artistic and technological heritage, is the historical heart of South Korea’s craft industry. Its many art workshops and factories of metal, hanji (Korean paper) and ceramics in particular still reflect the vitality of the sector.

The Cheongju International Craft Biennale and its host site, Culture Factory C, have emerged as a prime example of culture-based urban regeneration. Set in a unique location, a former tobacco factory rehabilitated as a cultural center next to the Cheongju branch of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA), the Cheongju Biennale has become the highlight of the international contemporary craft scene and this year features a rich program of exhibitions, an international competition, a lecture series, new projects from the Cheongju Museum and master classes.

An exhibition space of 730m² dedicated to France will offer the opportunity to the 34 selected French artists and members of Ateliers d’Art de France, to present their work internationally. The scenography, jointly realized by Ateliers d’Art de France and the artistic direction of the Cheongju Biennale, will underline the new dialogues of the French artists’ works.

The biennale announced that Rheem Mi-sun, a member of the Korean Committee for the Promotion of Handicrafts and Cultural Industry of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, will be the artistic director of the 12th edition. Rheem previously served as head of the craft division of the Korea Craft & Design Foundation, director of the Korean Craft Exhibition for the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics, and director of the Clayarch Gimhae Museum.

• The online exhibition will be available on the official website (www.okcj.org) from September 8, 2021. For more information, please visit the official website, facebook and instagram (@craftbiennale).

• Ateliers d’art de France is the official partner of this 12th Cheongju Biennale with international project managers Anne-Laure Roussille and Romain Juilha.

CHEONGJU CRAFT BIENNALE 2021

(28501) Cheongju Craft Biennale

Gallery 3, 3F of main building of the Culture Factory,

314 Sangdang-ro, Cheongwon-gu, Cheongju-si, Chungcheongbuk-do,

SOUTH KOREA