Designing a dictatorship: North Korean graphics – in pictures
Despite its prominent public profile, North Korea remains one of the world’s most enigmatic countries. A new publication from North Korea specialist Nicholas Bonner offers new insight into this isolated, fiercely ideological society by showcasing its visual culture. “Graphic design in North Korea breaks down into traditional elements and contemporary socialist influences,” says Bonner, whose work in the DPRK has spanned film-making and tourism. “The graphics have developed largely independently of the outside world and they now have a much more assured Korean style.” Well-known Korean landmarks provide common motifs, which serve to “imbue products with instantly recognisable ‘Korean-ness’, thereby making them, in their eyes, ‘the best’ – even in the absence of any competition”.
- Made in North Korea is out now on Phaidon
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The cover of a comic, The Snowstorm in the Tropics, about two North Korean doctors’ entanglements with the mafia in Africa.
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A lenticular postcard illustrating beauty products containing ginseng, a classic North Korean remedy widely used for various purposes including skin whitening.
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A postcard showing an image of busy industry and diligent work at a glassworks factory in Nampo, North Korea’s biggest port city, south of Pyongyang.
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Blueberry jelly packaging. Blueberries grow wild in the north of the country, and are used to make sweets, drinks and alcohol products.
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Letter-writing paper featuring an image of a traditional North Korean dance known as The Shepherd and the Lass, telling a tale of romance.
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A 1990s handheld paper fan – regularly handed out during the hot weather in July and August – featuring Air Koryo, the North Korean state airline.
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The cover of a comic book entitled Underwater Struggle, an action-adventure story set during the Korean War.
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This New Year’s postcard shows different eras of military service: anti-Japanese guerrillas, Korean War heroes, and contemporary soldiers in the foreground.
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The cover of a comic book entitled They Came Back, one of many comics telling of wartime, adventure and heroism featured in the book.
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This sweet wrapper would form part of a presentation box, featuring a striped pattern found widely in North Korean design.
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The ‘Torch of Ranam’, shown here, is a symbolic representation of the improved output at the Ranam coal-mining machine complex. The flame suggests innovation.
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A postcard showing the military (bottom left) helping the workers (bottom right) construct a dam. It reads, ‘Let’s make the people and army unity as hard as steel.’
Photograph: credits to come/All images courtesy of Phaidon
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