Far East Conversations / Report on talk event

Here is a report on the event held at 22 December, 2022, written by one of the participant Aki Iwaya! 日本語記事はこちら。

---Text by Aki Iwaya---
We held a talk event related to 【Far East Conversations】, a collaborative project of cultural organizations of the "Culture City of East Asia 2022 Oita" . 
I will report on the talk event!
https://culturecity-oita.com/event/1309

Outline of the event: 
December 22, 2022 19:00 - 
Under the title of "Far East Open-Online conversation," participants exchanged stories about their own places online with artists who create music and places in Gyeongju and Busan.　
https://yu-beppu.tumblr.com/post/704325238876422144/far-east-open-online-conversation

Overview:.
In October 2022, guest Kwang-hyuk. (a.k.a kwang, a.k.a Ganpal), a musician and placemaker in Gyeongju and Busan, and researcher Aki Iwaya（VS?collective） visited Gyeongju and Busan, Korea. They introduced each other's activities, including their host (YU) /Aiko Hashizume, and talked about their future exchange plans.

・Presentation of Kwang-hyuk. (a.k.a kwang / Ganpal) activities

Ganpal is a member of "ROOTS REDEEM", a contemporary music band that fuses traditional music and shamanism, and is responsible for events in Gyeongju. https://rootsredeem.creatorlink.net/
Ganpal also runs a music label. In addition, he is an "artivist."

The current base is located by a nature park overlooking a lake about 25 minutes by car from downtown Busan, and was built in 2019 as a DIY style with their friends (輪/Ryun), including a studio, gallery, cafe, and residence.

By the way, "artivist" is a multiplication between "art" and "activism".
Under the name of "Funny Revenge" (https://www.instagram.com/funny.revenge/), they have been taking actions to express alternative culture through their actions: "Candle Fight" in Seoul during the election period, and street live performance in Busan as well. At the same time as the election in Busan, they organized street live performances with young people and wheelchair-bound people for making civil’s existence visible. （Video recordings: https://linktr.ee/funnyrevenge ）

Until a few years ago, he ran a residence center called "AGIT" in the city, which was a nice hangout for artists from all over the world, where even the most absent-minded people could relax with music as a base.
However, gentrification (＝the attraction brought by new activities by new residents to an area that had not received much attention caused land prices to skyrocket ）forced the AGIT to leave the area. Mr. Gampal is now in his late thirties and has decided to choose a location that is less subject to gentrification in order to balance his music and his/their life.

The image of the activities that 輪/Ryun has in mind is "Hyper Local - Nature & Future".
In order to put this into practice, they have created a lakeside based space, and with the use of space, streets, protest resistance, and music as tools. They say it is necessary to build a network of relationships for survival.
That is why we must not forget about fun, peace, diversity, strategy, imagination, and solidarity.

He actually has been to Fukuoka eight times but has never been to any other cities in Japan, so he would like to stay in Oita, Beppu.
With a smile on his face, he says that would like to develop not a "make money strategy" but a "make friends strategy" to survive while soaking in hot springs.

・Aki Iwaya's presentation of activities and research

Aki Iwaya is a member of VS?collective, which researches the creative relationship between culture, art, and society, and stays and networks in their space with other alternative collective from Japan and overseas. In addition, Aki and other members are also launching their own multidisciplinary collaborative projects (art, welfare, medicine, education, etc.).
They say they resonate with Mr. Gampal's activities, as "artivism" is one of the main pillars of their activities.
https://akiiwaya-vscollective.studio.site/2

During the research residency with Aiko Hashizume/ (YU) and artist Riki Takeda, they visited local markets and art festivals in Gyeongju, independent spaces such as Mr. Gunpal's in Busan, and interviewed people involved in the Busan Biennale. In Busan, ther were able to get a broad overview of the contours of art and culture in the neighboring country as of 2022, from local streets to international festivals. He is now planning to connect his findings to the cultural and lifestyle activities at "Bunji-Dormitory" (https://motion-gallery.net/projects/bunji_ryo ), which is based in Kokubunji, Tokyo (theme: social experimental communal living in an urban area). And plans to link the results of this study to various cultural and lifestyle activities at Bunji Dormitory.

・Aiko Hashizume (YU)'s presentation

The presentation began with photos from her research in Gyeongju, sharing the contrast between the lively street stalls and the shopping district where the art event was held.
Next, she described (YU). This is a house in Beppu City that has been reinterpretated/utilized as a residence facility and has served the function of encouraging ambitious artists and guests from Japan and abroad to stay & plan. https://yu-beppu.tumblr.com/aboutus

As an extension of these activities, this project is also tentatively titled "Far East Conversation." As our neighbors to the east, we have been working to create a "something" that will last beyond 2022 by engaging in cultural exchange both in publicly and privately. This is what she have been working on.

・A brainstorming session on the future exchange between Oita and Busan.

So naturally the discussion turned to concrete plans for inviting each other to stay in Beppu, Busan and Gyeongju (and Tokyo).
At our current base in Busan, we hold a "Full Moon Open-Air Gig" every month on the night of the full moon, so you are always welcome to come along.

Beppu has hot springs and is sooo fun. Tokyo is still also big, but I can introduce you to some interesting people and space. When is a good time, and how many people are coming? There's a nice guy who makes old instruments, I'd love to introduce him to you.
Ooo-la-la〜, can't wait for the Corona to converge...oh my, it's after 9:00...see you guys~!

OK, so like this, for the latest information, please visit on the web (https://yu-beppu.tumblr.com/ ) and Instagram @domanoyu.

Organized by Artist in Residence (YU), ( Culture City of East Asia 2022 Oita )