Welcome to the 2026
Busan International Photo Festival.

Welcome to the 2026 Busan International Photo Festival.

Thanks for discovering the Busan International Photo Festival.
Now in its tenth year, the 2026 Busan International Photography Festival aims to pose a fundamental question to all of you through this year’s theme, “Being Human” : the restoration of human dignity and the human spirit. Through the festival, we have prepared a special journey that invites you to confront the alienation and isolation hidden behind our era of technology and abundance, and to explore the enduring value of humanity that persists even amidst these challenges.

In this exhibition, you will have the opportunity to deeply empathize with the lives of those around us through the lenses of 15 world-renowned photographers, including Xiomara Bender and Jon Henry. The shared human values captured by these artists will offer fresh insights and moments of reflection, helping visitors rediscover the “self” and the “collective” that have been lost in modern civilization.

The Busan International Photography Festival has grown beyond its role as Korea’s premier photography festival to establish itself as a central platform within the global photography network. Drawing on the universal aesthetic values inherent in the city of Busan, the festival aims to serve as a venue that balances artistic depth with broad public resonance. The diverse visual records from around the world, rarely encountered in everyday life, will broaden your horizons and deepen your perspective on the world.

I hope this photography festival will serve as a meaningful opportunity not only to appreciate the power of art, but also to experience and share the sense of humanity that our era must restore.

chairman of the BIPF Organizing Committee Na Hong-ryeol

Theme Exhibition Director

Lee Ilwoo

Art Director / Independent Curator

Meisterschüler (Master Student), Kunstakademie Münster (Münster Academy of Fine Arts)
M.A. (Master of Arts) in Fine Arts, Kunstakademie Münster (Münster Academy of Fine Arts)
B.F.A. (Bachelor of Fine Arts) in Photography, Chung-Ang University (Major in Fine Art Photography)

Current position :
Director, Korea Photographers Gallery / Independent Curator / Steering Committee Member, Daegu Photo Biennale

2025-2026 Initiator & director, International exchange program with the German-Japanese Museum Schloss Mitsuko
2024 Project Developer,The Book of Life, Culture City Project
2024 Curator, Goyo Berlin— Solo Exhibition of Han Chungshik, Berlin Kunstverein Rosa-Luxemburg Platz, Germany
2021 Curator, Sil(h)ence, Promotional exhibition for Korean artists in Berlin
2020 Founded Korea Photographers Gallery
2020 Organized Bomstation Europa Launch: Wearable Art Show, L40, Berlin2019 Developed BOM STATION art-collaborative fashion content
2019 Project Planner, Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture Mecenat Project
2018 Founded Bom Arts & Company2017 Artistic Director, Seoul Photo Festival – Community for Self-reflection: State, Individual, and Us
   - Main Exhibition, Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA)
   - Special Exhibition, SeMA Storage
   - Red Line Film Festival, ARTNINE Cinema
   - Public Art Project, Platform Changdong 61
22017 Guest Curator, Han Chungshik: Goyo, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea
2016 Artistic Director, Seoul Photo Festival – Seoul New 新 Arirang: Like Thousand Miles of Rivers
   - Main Exhibition, Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA)
   - Special Exhibitions, Seoul Metropolitan Library & Citizen's Hall (Simincheong)br/>    - Mullae Art Space Special Exhibition: Curated a collaborative exhibition across 10 independent venues
   - Special Exhibitions, Boan Inn (Boan1942) & Seoul Innovation Park
2015 2015 General Director, Art + Urban Regeneration, Arts Council Korea / Everyday Regeneration, Busan Foundation for Arts and Culture
2015 Executive Committee Member, DongGang International Photo Festival2015 Exhibition Director, The Secret of Magnum Photos – Brilliant Korea2014 Exhibition Curator, Daegu Photo Biennale
2014 Curator, International Exchange Project Danstory, Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture
2013–2014 Board Member, CC Korea
2013 Curator, Changwon Asian Art Festival – Contemporary Art Exhibition
2012 General Director, Chungmuro Urban Gallery Project – Chungmuro Photo Festival2009–2011 CEO & Director, Visual Arts Center Boda
2010–2011 Editor-in-Chief, Asian Contemporary Art Magazine POINT
2007–2011 Director, KPP– International Promotion Project for Korean Photographers2006–2008 Program Manager, Photo Art Center Boda2004–2005 Program Director, Korean Artist Group 0082, Germany

Overview

Event Schedule

Event Name

2026 Busan International Photo Festival

Theme

Human, 人

Exhibition Dates & Period

Opening Date : July 29, 2026 (Wednesday)
Exhibition Period : July 29 – August 18, 2026
Opening Ceremony : August 1 (Saturday) 4:00 PM
Closing Ceremony : August 18 (Tuesday) 2:00 PM

Viewing Hours

10:00 AM – 6:00 PM

Venues

BPEX (Busan Port International Exhibition & Convention center) 5F
Sasang Indy Station

Organizers

Organized & Hosted by: Busan International Photo Festival Organizing Committee

Artistic Director

Lee Il-woo

Curators

Jung Geum-hee, Lee Jeong-eun, Lee Jae-kyun

Organization.

조직 구성원

조직위원

Organizing Committee Member

- Honorary ChairmanHwang In-jae

- Chairman of Organizing Committee (President)Na Hong-ryeol

- Chairperson of Preparatory CommitteeLee Na-gyeom

- Senior Vice ChairmanNa Hong-ryeol

- Immediate Past PresidentBaek Sung-wook

- Vice Chairman of Organizing CommitteeKang Seong-ho, Kwon Jeong-su, Park Gyu-no, Son Chul, Shin Hyun-doo, Shin Hyun-woo, Lee Kyung-hee

- AdvisorKim Dong-jun, Kim Hong-hee, Moon Jin-woo, Jeong Bong-chae, Choi Won-rak

- ConsultantChoi Sang-seon, Yoo Sung-jong, Im Hyun-sook, Noh Byung-hee

- AuditorYoo Il-sang, Kim Bo-min

- PR DirectorKim Kyung-soo

- Planning DirectorNam Chae-yoon

- External Cooperation DirectorPark Seung-geun

- Management DirectorLee Seung-gi

- Finance DirectorCho Eun-ah

- ArchivistYoon Won-wook

- Organizing Committee MemberKim Ung-hoon, Kim Hyun-deok, Oh Hae-jung, Lee Na-gyeom (2), Lee Ho-young, Choi Yang-hwa, Choi Myung-seok, Heo Jae-young

- Media Committee DirectorYoon Hyun-joo

- Youth DirectorKwon Hae-il

- Operating Committee MemberPark Jeong-il, Han Gu-young, Yoon Mi-hwa, Jeong Jin-ah

- SecretariatJeong Kye-haeng, Ye Seong-hwa

전시기획위원

Exhibition Planning Committee Member

- Exhibition DirectorLee Il-woo

- Exhibition DesignerPark Sang-hee, Jeong Jin-ah, Yoo Si-hyun

- Exhibition Planning Committee MemberLee Dong-geun, Yoon Chang-soo, Lee Kye-young, Cha Ji-hyun, Jung Geum-hee

PARTNERS & SPONSORS

BIPF와 함께 합니다.