Gwangju Metropolitan City and Gwangju Design Promotion Agency officially appointed Professor Na Gun as the general director of the 2023 Gwangju Design Biennale after recommending the general director recommendation committee and selecting the board of directors.
The new general director, Na Gun, majored in industrial engineering and KAIST’s master’s degree (industrial engineering) at Hanyang University, and received a doctorate (engineering design) from Tufts University in 1996.
Director Na worked at IDAS (Hongik University’s Graduate School of International Design) in 2000 and served as a graduate director three times, and conducted various design projects with major companies as well as design research and development.
In particular, Na served as curator of the Gwangju Design Biennale and general director of “2010 World Design Capital Seoul” and has been a judge of the world’s three major design contests for 14 consecutive years since 2009, as well as the U.S. IDEA, Hong Kong, Singapore, and China.
In addition, he has been engaged in various activities in the domestic and foreign design circles, including serving as chairman of the Korea Design Management Association and chairman of the Korea Design Knowledge Forum.
In recognition of such efforts and contributions to design promotion, Director Na received the 21st Korea Design Awards Geunjeong Packaging in 2019.
Professor Na, who was appointed as the general director on the same day, will be in charge of planning events such as selecting the theme of the 2023 Gwangju Design Biennale, establishing a master plan, selecting designers and companies participating in domestic and overseas, and operating the event.
The Gwangju Design Biennale has the value of being the world’s first design Biennale, said the new general director Na Gun. “We will prepare the event with the determination to make new alcohol to enter a new unit.” In addition, general director Na stressed, “We will do our best to present innovation strategies, new hopes, and new values in response to the rapidly changing environment through the 2023 Gwangju Design Biennale, which marks the 10th event.”
Meanwhile, Gwangju City and the Design Promotion Agency began preparing for the 2023 Gwangju Design Biennale with the appointment of general director Na. The 10th Gwangju Design Biennale will be held at the Gwangju Biennale Exhibition Hall for two months from September to October 2023.
