Gwangju: The 16th Gwangju Biennale will launch this weekend in the southwestern city of Gwangju, with 43 teams from South Korea and abroad presenting works themed on transformation as a continuous process. This year's event will begin with an opening ceremony Friday evening and officially kick off its 72-day run from Saturday through Nov. 5.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the exhibition is inspired by Rainer Maria Rilke's 1908 poem "Archaic Torso of Apollo," concluding with the line "You must change your life." The Biennale brings together works exploring how new capacities and forms of life emerge through change and artistic practice. Artistic director Ho Tzu Nyen highlighted at a March press conference that the Biennale examines change as an artistic method through which art thinkers, dreamers, and lovers experiment with new forms of life, creativity, power, and relationship.

To enhance viewer experience, the Biennale has concentrated the displayed works into one venue rather than spreading them across the city. Featured artists include Mona Benyamin, Angela Goh, Daisuke Kosugi, Kim Sun-ik, and James T. Hong. Notably participating is Volcanoes of Jeju, or Jeju Stone Park, showcasing volcanic stones from Jeju island, engraved with the story of volcanic eruptions and the passage of millennia.

The Biennale's Pavilion Project, introduced in 2018 to promote artistic exchange among artists and institutions, initially planned to feature 16 countries and 11 institutions. However, it faced setbacks due to controversy over the name Taiwan Pavilion, leading to participating Chinese artists holding a press conference to announce their withdrawal in protest.