The theme of the Busan Biennale is ‘Living in Evolution’ and it explores both the evolution of humanity as a species, and that of the individual. Set in venues and spaces dotted throughout the sky-scraper port city, the works in this biennale present the dual ideas that, on the one hand, ‘artworks themselves are points where the life of one person – the artist – intersects with the evolution of the human race’, and on the other, artworks are ‘related to life or something beyond the life of any single individual’ (T. Azumaya, Artistic Director).
However, more than being investigations into the dualities of evolution, many of the works in this exhibition are simply fun and enjoyable to view, evoking first and foremost the spectacle nature of art. ‘Earth Baby’ by Japanese artist Tomoko Konoike is one such work. An enormous, sparkly, open-mouthed baby head that rotates in the centre of a large, dark room, this work is supposed to represent the earth floating in space, perhaps before its gradual evolution into the planet we now know. But standing on a platform in the dark room and looking down at this spinning ‘Earth Baby’ made me feel as though I were revolving around its disco-ball head; all I could think was ‘This is really cool!’ And sometimes, while it is important to understand the concept and academic approaches of a work, it is just as important to enjoy it visually and experientially. This work, and others in the exhibition, like the installation of a room full of dolls’ hair, offered just that, and hence a light-hearted, optimistic approach to evolution thus far.
Of course, there were also works which sought to remind us of the horrendous effects of the (d)evolution of humanity. Dinh Q. Le’s much-celebrated ‘Farmers and Helicopters’ video installation is a work which juxtaposes the traumatic memories of the helicopters which were so ubiquitous in inflicting horror on Vietnam War survivors, with the more positive opinions of newer generation Vietnamese farmers who view the helicopter as a convenient tool in their rural lives. The differences in the interviewee’s opinions represent the ongoing conflict and traumatic residues of the War. Another sobering work was Yishay Garbasz’s photographic series documenting the European locations his mother inhabited during her internment in Nazi death camps during WWII. Accompanying these photographs, taken retrospectively in this century, are his mother’s memories of each location, recorded in her own writing, decades after the end of the war. Alongside this work is a documentation of Garbasz’s own physical and psychological transformation from becoming a man to a woman, at the same time as she took the journey of her mother’s imprisonment throughout Europe. 
Finally, one of the best artworks I have ever seen is Zadok Ben-David’s ‘Blackfield’ at the Yacht Club, an old, dilapidated warehouse overlooking the dock. The work comprises about 20000 hand-painted, stainless steel plant sculptures, varying in height from 1cm to 22cm, all sprouting out of a large bed of sand. Upon entering the venue, the audience is faced with a mass of black plants, in what resembles a post-apocalyptic scene of ruin and death. However, as you walk along the edges of the sand, and look back on the plants, an overwhelming sense of joy and delight takes over; the darkness slowly transforms into vibrant colours as the other side of the plant sculptures have been intricately painted with the bright hues of a fertile nature. It was a beautiful experience to be able to see plants growing and blossoming before your very eyes. I was absolutely mesmerised by the splendour and beauty of this work, which really encapsulates the experience of discovery that I love so much about viewing and encountering art.
Overall this Biennale was thematically sound and well-executed. The works engaged themselves with the dialogue of evolution and also positioned art centrally in this discourse. More importantly, the Biennale was simply great to look at and experience. [Images from ME]
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