The 8th Gwangju Biennale will feature works by more than 130 artists from 30 countries including Yang Haegue, an internationally known Korean sculptor and installation artist whose work is shown here. / Courtesy of organizers By Ines Min Staff Reporter A tentative list of participating artists for the 8th Gwangju Biennale has been announced. Art director Massimiliano Gioni presented last week in Seoul a preview of some of the artists’ works to be included, although the schedule has yet to be finalized. More than 130 artists from 30 countries ― including 13 from South Korea ―are expected to be showcased in Gwangju from Sept. 3 through Nov. 7. The list includes such names as Jeff Koons, famous for his large-scale reproductions of daily items such as balloons, Yang Haegue, an internationally known Korean sculptor and installation artist; and Glenn Brown, a British artist who puts his own unique, macabre twist on already-famous works. As the overarching theme of the Biennale, “10,000 Lives,” is to be a tribute to the past ― this year marks the 30th anniversary of the May 18 revolution ― Gioni said he hoped the Biennale would emulate “more of a contemporary museum,” as many older works and works by deceased artists will be on display. Renowned institutions such as the Tate Modern, the Pompidou Center and World Museum as well as private collectors will loan pieces to the Biennale. Artists representing the past include a range of relatively unknown ones and art world icons. Works from Morton Bartlett, an “outsider” artist who created a series of dolls while living as a hermit, to Andy Warhol will be featured. The work of Emma Kunz, a series created while she worked as a healer will also be exhibited. There will be comprehensive installations such as Ydessa Hendeles’ “Teddy Bear Project,” that captures photos and artifacts of the stuffed animal from its inception in 1905, to 1936. Zhao Shutong’s “Rent Collection Courtyard” will also be seen in its entirety of 103 statues for the first time in Asia, and outside of its home country. The series of cathartically emotive statues fight, beg and plead as collectors come for the rent they cannot pay. Gioni said roughly 40 percent of the exhibited works will have been created especially for the event, while the rest are pre-existing pieces. The 8th Gwangju Biennale also released its first project for this year’s festivities, “I’m Not There: A Sourcebook.” The thick volume compiles the works of various small and well-known artists, from Japan to Afghanistan. With the release of the book, “we can say the Biennale has already started,” the art director joked. The Gwangju Biennale, Asia's first contemporary art biennale, started in 1995.