Korean Pavilion 2026: Liberation Space: Fortress/Nest

With the 61st International Art Exhibition scheduled to run from May 9 to Nov. 22, the Arts Council Korea last week unveiled the theme of this year’s Korean Pavilion, along with its two featured artists. About According to artistic director Binna Choi, who will curate the exhibition, the pavilion will transform some of the most turbulent chapters of Korea’s recent political history into a meditation on what “liberation” means in an age of democratic crisis. Titled “Liberation Space: Fortress and Nest,” the exhibition takes the 2024 martial law crisis as its point of departure, when an emergency decree by then-President Yoon Suk Yeol in December was swiftly blocked by citizens and lawmakers. The episode triggered months of protests, Yoon's impeachment and ultimately the election of a new president. Rather than presenting a conventional national showcase or a simple gesture against nationalism, Choi said she aims to “reframe the entire pavilion as a monument," offering tools to “fix the nation,” a phrase drawn from protest slogans, through solidarity rather than exclusion. “The pavilion must become a living ‘liberation space’ where the idea of liberation is continuously redefined,” she said. Choi’s concept will be realized through the works of sculptor Choi Goen and installation artist Hyeree Ro. Read more Toggle Sculpture Installation