South Korea's only media art fair, Loop Plus, was held from April 23 to 26 at the Grand Josun Busan Hotel in Haeundae, Busan. The fair transformed 26 hotel rooms on the 13th floor into exhibition spaces, featuring media artworks from 19 international galleries including Tang Contemporary Art, Esther Schipper, Chiwen Gallery, and Baek Art. Highlights included a 38-minute video installation by Russian artist group AES+F titled *‘Inverso Mundus’*, presented by Tang Contemporary Art, which humorously subverts societal absurdities. The event also included artist booths for Kang Lee-yeon and Lucia Levolino, and institutional booths for the Justice Foundation and Gwangju Media Art Platform. A related festival, Loop Lab Busan 2026, runs until June 28 across multiple venues in Busan.
This fair matters because it addresses the high entry barrier for collecting media art, which involves complex technical issues like file formats, playback devices, and preservation. Last year's edition saw significant acquisitions by major collectors and institutions, including the Pinault Collection. Director Kim Young-eun emphasized that purchasing media art requires ongoing management infrastructure, and that South Korea is well-positioned to become an Asian hub for media art. The fair's hotel-room format makes viewing and purchasing accessible, allowing audiences to experience works intimately while lying on beds or sitting on sofas.