Chinese artists withdraw from biennale

Chinese artists withdrew from a major South Korean art show after organizers allowed “Taiwan” to be used in the name of the exhibition, officials said yesterday, as China issued a rebuke.

The Gwangju Biennale, one of Asia’s largest contemporary art events, is to open tomorrow, with its Pavilion Project bringing together artists from around the world at venues across the city.

The dispute began after Taiwanese artists said organizers had initially agreed to call their exhibition the “Taiwan Pavilion,” but in June changed the name to “NTMoFA,” the acronym for the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts.

The change was made “without the consent of the participating team, and brutally erased Taiwan from the poster,” the artists said in a joint statement last month, accusing organizers of political censorship.

Last week, the Gwangju Biennale Foundation reversed course and agreed to restore the name “Taiwan Pavilion.”

Chinese artists then halted preparations for their own pavilion, and yesterday the Chinese artists announced they would formally withdraw, local media reported.

A spokesperson for the foundation confirmed that the Chinese artists were withdrawing.

China’s consulate general in Gwangju said biennale organizers “openly allowed the Taiwan region of China to participate in the exhibition using a name that is completely inconsistent with its status.”

“This constitutes a serious violation of the one China principle,” it said. “We once again urge the organizers of the Gwangju Biennale to immediately rectify their wrongdoing.”

The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the “government’s basic position regarding Taiwan remains unchanged.”

The decision was made in the cultural and artistic sphere, and “is unrelated to the South Korean government’s position regarding Taiwan,” it said.

“We hope that this issue will not affect South Korea-China relations or exchanges and cooperation between the two countries,” it added.

A Straits Exchange Foundation official today warned that yielding to political pressure in exchange for access to China’s entertainment industry rarely ends well, amid rumors that China is seeking to lure Taiwanese K-pop star Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜). Chou, more commonly known as Tzuyu, is the only Taiwanese member of the girl group Twice. Her contract with JYP Entertainment is set to expire at the end of this year, and there have been widespread reports that she would not renew it.

She is reportedly planning to pursue solo activities under her parents’ agency, Yu Hai Entertainment (瑜海娛樂), although China has also reportedly offered

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