MaytoDay commemorates the 40th anniversary of the May 18 Democratic Uprising. It examines and sheds new light on the works featured in the Gwangju Biennale. As the title suggests, MaytoDay focuses on the tragedy in May as a daily presence, and brings the time to the present day.
The exhibition recontextualizes the history and records of the 25 years of the Gwangju Biennale from today’s perspective, and establishes connections with democratic movements in other regions and countries.

MaytoDay does not seek to treat the May 18 Democratic Uprising as a fossilized historic event. Rather, the project treats the uprising and the contemporary spirit of democracy with the language of art. Because of this, MaytoDay sought solidarity with its visits to Seoul, Taipei in Taiwan, Cologne in Germany, and Buenos Aires in Argentina, four areas with turbulent histories that still resonate today.
The exhibition in Gwangju will combine and reorganize the exhibits from the past iterations that began in May 2020, overlapping the story of Gwangju with the historic and political experiences of each country.

Hwang Tsien Hung, who organized May Co-sensus: Demo-stream in Democracy held at the Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts in May, re-illuminated the past and present of democratization in Taiwan and Korea with two key words: “co-sensus” and streams. The exhibition is also connected with the democratization movement in today’s Hong Kong. The exhibition Spring of Democracy in Seoul was organized by Ute Meta Bauer. The exhibition featured exhibits on the May 18 Democratic Uprising introduced or created through the Gwangju Biennale. The exhibits were juxtaposed with other archives and artworks related with the uprising, showcasing how records and historical facts expand into works of art.  
Curator Choi Bitna organized Gwangju Lesson, the exhibition held in Cologne in July. She worked with Christian Nyampeta from Rwanda to explore the wood print movement and its collaborative work process at the Gwangju Citizen Art School (1983–late 1980’s). In Myths of the Near Future, the Buenos Aires exhibition postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, organizers Sophia Dourron and Javier Villa focus on the witnesses of violence and tragedy in Korea and Argentina, their history of resistance, and the actions and roles of the May Mothers’ Society.

MaytoDay at the ACC will reorganize and explore these exhibitions touching on a wide scope of history, and provide opportunities to build new relationships and understand their differences and similarities.

The MaytoDay exhibition coincides with an exhibition featuring works from the Gwangju Biennale Commission (GB Commission) projects in 2018 and 2020, which touch on issues related to the May 18 Democratic Uprising, and Wood Prints in the 1980’s: Testimonies of Resistance, Memories of the Uprising, which will be held at the Mugaksa Temple Lotus Gallery with curated by Kim Jinha. The exhibition will provide an overview of wood prints and published works that served as media outlets for the movement during the military regime in the 1980’s.