2009

The 6th Asia Pacific Triennial (APT) of Contemporary Art 2009

The first Australian exhibition of contemporary paintings from North Korea.

Every three years, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) hosts the Asia Pacific Triennial (APT) of Contemporary Art, one of Australia’s flagship art events. The organizers were unable to include any art from North Korea until the event’s sixth edition, thanks to Koryo Studio’s involvement. QAGOMA approached Koryo Studio to ask for help in its quest to reach North Korea’s artists.

“Propaganda or ground-breaking work by North Korean artists? Propaganda, says Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen Smith; ground-breaking contemporary art, says the Queensland Art Gallery. As for what the artists themselves think and feel, we will never know.”

Sydney Morning Herald

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Koryo’s founder, Nicholas Bonner, co-curated the exhibition. He spent more than three years visiting the DPRK’s art studios to ensure the success of this project, searching out the best talent, convincing them to come on board and commissioning the art.

The gallery invited the Korean artists to attend the opening, but the Australian government refused their entry. Their artwork, however, remains in QAGOMA’s collection on long term loan.