The 13th Seoul Mediacity Biennale, titled "Seance: Technology of the Spirit," opens at the Seoul Museum of Art and other venues across Seoul until November 23. Curated by Anton Vidokle, Hallie Ayres, and Lukas Brasiskis, the biennale brings together 49 artists and collectives exploring spirituality, mysticism, and shamanism as counterpoints to the anxiety and alienation of technological advancement. The theme emerged from the curators' work on the 2023 Shanghai Biennale and includes works by Hilma af Klint, Jane Jin Kaisen, Angela Su, Hsu Chia-Wei, and the late Nam June Paik, alongside sound and experimental theatre sections hosted at Nakwon Arcade.
This biennale matters because it marks a major institutional effort to map the relationship between contemporary art and spirituality across geography and recent history, addressing a resurgence of shamanism in Korea after decades of persecution. By incorporating experimental theatre and ritualistic performances, the exhibition pushes the boundaries of the biennale format and reflects a broader global artistic turn toward the mystical as a means of healing historical trauma and reconnecting with communal experience in an age of algorithmic automation.