THE MESMERIZING MUNDANE OBJECTS OF ORDINARY NORTH KOREAN LIFE

With North Korea so often discussed only in terms of extremes, this exhibit’s focus on the mundane is what makes it so fascinating.

Christine Ro

Installation view of Made in North Korea: Everyday Graphics from the DPRK at House of Illustration (image courtesy the House of Illustration)

LONDON — Made in North Korea: Everyday Graphics from the DPRK, a new exhibit at London’s House of Illustration, shows that interesting graphic design can be showcased in utterly prosaic objects, from cigarette boxes to bottled water labels and wrapping paper.

This focus on the mundane is, paradoxically enough, what makes the exhibit so fascinating. North Korea is so often discussed only in terms of extremes. Thus, this show’s attention to the ephemera of everyday life allows for different stories to be told about the country.

Performance ticket for a Schoolchildren’s Palace (centers of extracurricular excellence for local children) (collection of Nicholas Bonner, photograph courtesy Phaidon)

For instance, commemorative stamps featuring British royalty are a surprise. Also unexpected is the well-crafted timelapse video showing a cross-section of Pyongyang life. This depicts a pleasant capital whose people and routines (a crossing guard guiding pedestrians along, skateboarding kids mugging for the camera) feel familiar — although there were restrictions on what could be filmed, such as military sites.

Also surprising and instructive are the contradictions of North Korean cultural and political life on display. Many product labels bear English text, which manufacturers hoped would lend their products a mark of international quality. These packages of “canned flatfish” and “sweet-smelling drops” sit in the same room as notepaper extolling Korean superiority and comics demonizing American savages. The objects point to an interesting tension in North Korean attitudes toward foreigners: alternately venerating and denigrating them.

The ephemera on display here was collected by Nicholas Bonner, a British tour guide and expert on North Korean art, since 1993. Photos of his collection are gathered in the Phaidon book Graphics from Everyday Life in North Korea, the basis for the current exhibit. The display, however, is a bit too focused on objects for the tourist’s ― even hotel “Do Not Disturb” signs and safety instructions for air passengers are included, though they aren’t the most visually interesting of objects. But overall, Made in North Korea packs a wide-ranging and well-curated set of items into just a few rooms.

These few rooms are just as cleverly and strikingly designed as the objects on display. The bright colors of the propaganda posters, which have stirring socialist messages like “Let’s take good care of the People’s assets!” pop against the vivid blue, yellow, and orange walls. One room has turned North Korean food packaging and other items into a wallpaper pattern, so that the walls themselves become part of the exhibit. And the captions and explanations are helpful without being obtrusive or, as is so often the case with exhibits of North Korean culture, well-meaning but condescending……………

https://hyperallergic.com/432560/made-in-north-korea-house-of-illustration-nicholas-bonner/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Mar%2016%202018%20-%20In%20Major%20Reversal%20Cooper%20Union%20Adopts%20Plan%20to%20Return%20to%20Full-Tuition%20Scholarships&utm_content=Mar%2016%202018%20-%20In%20Major%20Reversal%20Cooper%20Union%20Adopts%20Plan%20to%20Return%20to%20Full-Tuition%20Scholarships+CID_2a871b52d819a6d375a1c9ad40f637b3&utm_source=HyperallergicNewsletter