2021 Gyeonggi Ceramic Biennale
6 Award-Winning Works from the International Competition
The Korea Ceramic Foundation has given an advance unveiling of six award-winning works from the international competition, with just over 50 days remaining until the opening of the 2021 Korea International Ceramic Biennale (KICB).
Now in its 11th edition, Korea's largest international ceramic art exhibition, the '2021 Korea International Ceramic Biennale,' will be held from October 1 to November 28 under the theme 'Re:start,' at the Gyeonggi Museum of Ceramic Art in Icheon, the Gyeonggi Museum of Contemporary Ceramic Art in Yeoju, and the Gyeonggi Ceramic Museum in Gwangju.
For this international competition, 2,503 works by 1,184 artists from 70 countries were submitted this past February. Through a first-round online image screening and a second-round on-site screening, the Korea Ceramic Foundation finalized a total of 76 selected works.
Among the award-winning works unveiled in advance, two pieces earned the Gold Prize: 'Fragmented Framing' by U.S. artist Darien Arikoski-Johnson and 'Homunculus-LR' by Taiwanese artist Ming-Shun Cho. No Grand Prize was awarded, as no work in this screening was deemed to meet the criteria.
Next, the Silver Prize went to 'Tracing Drawing Series #2021-1' by Korean artist Ju Se-gyun, and the Bronze Prize was awarded to 'Bounded Fragility' by U.S. artist Susan Beiner.
In addition, the KICB Residency Prize went to 'Cabinet of curiosities' by Korean artist Oh Je-seong, and the KICB Young Artist Prize was awarded to 'Tribute to Braille' by Chinese artist Zhang Kai.
The judges explained that they took note of the award-winning works from the perspective that they embody messages about the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and politics that we are currently experiencing. In particular, they praised the Gold Prize-winning work for the refined way it reinterprets ceramics not only for decorative purposes but also in the direction of everyday tools and props.
The six award-winning works unveiled in advance, along with a total of 76 selected works, will be presented at the 2021 Korea International Ceramic Biennale. This exhibition features a biennale archive space organizing the selected works by continent, and during the exhibition period one additional Popular Prize will be selected through online voting in which visitors participate directly. The awards ceremony will be held on October 1 at the Gyeonggi Museum of Ceramic Art (formerly the Icheon World Ceramic Center).
▲ Gold Prize, 'Homunculus-LR' by Ming-Shun Cho of Taiwan
▲ Gold Prize, 'Fragmented Framing' by Darien Arikoski-Johnson of the United States