The Busan Biennale Organizing Committee holds the Sea Art Festival 2011 in the form of a stand-alone exhibition in a bid to establish a unique marine art brand of Busan. The Sea Art Festival, which has earned its popularity as an exhibition taking advantage of the natural blessing of the sea in Busan, was initially designed in the year 1987 as part of cultural events for the Pre-Olympics before the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Integrated into the Busan Biennale as a key component of the main exhibitions, the 24-year-old Sea Art Festival is the living history of the art of Busan. In addition, the Sea Art Festival, which is set in the sea and its waterfront areas, is a unique exhibition on the international art scene in terms of experimentalism of artworks and the spatial elements of the sea. The festival, the pride and joy of Busan citizens, was launched 10 years ahead of “Sculpture by the Sea,” an exhibition taking place on a beach in Sydney, Australia.
The festival, which brings together a total of 25 artworks through an international competition (20 from a general competition and 5 from a competition among designated artists), is set to take place in Songdo Beach, located in Seo-gu, Busan, for 3 weeks from October 1 to 21, 2011, under the theme “Songdo,” chosen to highlight the unique characteristics of the exhibition venue. The Sea Art Festival 2011 will hold the international competition in order to promote Busan’s unique arts and to attract many artists at home and abroad. Meantime, general competition which features imagination and experimental spirit of artists and invitation world-renowned artists will take place at the same time, which will further satisfy many visitors’ needs.
The review process is composed of three stages: the 1st-round of a paper review, the 2nd-round of a model review and the 3rd-round of a final review. Certificates and prizes will be awarded to 1 Grand Prize, 1 Excellence Award, 18 Special Selections and a number of successful entrants. The award certificate in the name of the Chairman of the Busan Biennale Organizing Committee and the money prize of 15 million won will be awarded to the Grand Prize recipient, an award certificate and the prize money of 10 million won for the Excellence Award, and an award certificate and 5 million won for 18 Special Selection awardees. The Grand Prize and the Excellence Award winners will be invited to the main exhibitions of the Busan Biennale 2012.
A total of 74 artworks from 17 countries were submitted to the international competition for the Sea Art Festival 2011 from April 20 to 27, 2011. The number of submitted artworks increased compared with 2002 and 2004, and is considered encouraging given that the competition was not held in 2008 and 2010. About 26 out of the 74 artworks, or 35% were submitted from overseas: North America (including the US and Canada), Europe (including France, Italy and Germany) and Asia (including Japan, China and India).
A total of 41 artworks from 10 countries were selected as candidates for the award from the first-round document review on April 29. Five judges assessed the application and drawing of each submission on the consistency between the theme of the exhibition and the idea of the artwork, harmony with the environment (i.e., the sea) and artistic and technical excellence, and the candidates were selected based on the judges' combined scores.
The 41 selected artworks were submitted by artists from 10 countries: 26 works from Korea; 3 from the US; 2 each from Japan, Germany, France and Italy; 1 each from Taiwan, Slovenia, Russia and Bulgaria. These artists—3 of them in their 20s, 17 in their 30s and 7 in their 40s—will offer their young and fresh perspectives in the competition.
The selected artworks effectively utilize not only the sand beach but also the surface of the sea and the topography of and facilities near Songdo beach. These artworks not only try to harmonize with the beach but offer unique perspectives using a variety of materials: stainless steel, wood, PVC, sand, plants and light. They are particularly consistent with the purpose of the Sea Art Festival 2011, as they go beyond the stereotype of installation art and experiment with various genres, using image and light, distorting vision and creating kinetic art. Furthermore, as these artworks encompass the past, present and future of Songdo, those who visit Songdo beach for the first time and see the artworks will appreciate the beauty of the beach and make good memories while seniors will recall their fond memories about the beach.
The Organizing Committee will receive models of the selected artworks from July 4 to 8 for the second-round review to determine candidates for Special Selection of the competition. The 20 artworks to be selected from the review will be installed on Songdo beach on October 1 for final selection.
The criteria for choosing successful entrants will include not only the artistic value and originality of the artwork but also technical and environmental factors taking into consideration natural surroundings and geographical conditions.
Meanwhile, the venue for the Sea Art Festival 2011 is Songdo Beach, which opened in 1913 as the first-ever beach in Korea. The Songdo Resort Corporation established by a group of Japanese people who moved to Busan during the Japanese Occupation developed the area known as Songdo (current location of Turtle Island) by building a resort facility called Soojeong and turning the surrounding sandy area into a beach in 1913. Earning the nickname “Naples of Asia,” Songdo Beach enjoyed fame and popularity thanks to its gentle waves, shallow body of water along the shore, and ivory-colored sandy beach. After the Korean War, the growth of the city and an increase in the number of tourists led to a surge in the construction of restaurants and accommodation facilities around Songdo Beach. In particular, the 420-meter-long cable car connecting Turtle Island and the western hill of the beach, the Bridge of Clouds between Pine Forest Park and Turtle Island, and the diving board located in the middle of the beach remain as topics for many people to reminisce about. However, Soojeong built on Songdo (current location of Turtle Island) was damaged and restored several times due to storms. As a result of years of erosion, the area ended up having the shape of a turtle, with the island earning the nickname Turtle Island. In the 1990s, the degradation of water quality and the loss of sand had an adverse effect on its function as a beach, putting Songdo Beach on the path to decline. Starting the year 2000, a shore restoration project got underway in earnest, under which detached and underwater breakwaters and a sewage treatment facility were constructed. The project has contributed to the beach regaining its past beauty and fame little by little.
