by Jon Lackman | 17 October 2007 | Asia
In the latest issue of the Journal of the History of Collections (XIX, 1), J.E. Hoare reviews Jane Portal’s Art under Control in North Korea,
The only permanent display of North Korean art in the West is at the British Museum, and it is fitting that Jane Portal, the curator who started this collection, has now provided what she describes as ‘just a beginning’ in introducing this little-known field to a wider audience. She places North Korean art firmly in two contexts: the totalitarian tradition of grandiose monuments and buildings and the intensely political nature of all activities in North Korea … Visitors will be told that one building has so many blocks, representing Kim Il Sung’s life, or that another’s height tells the same story … All this is presented as though it is original and based on Korean traditions … However, even the most casual observer becomes aware that what passes for Korean tradition in North Korea is rather an eclectic collection of styles drawn from all over the world … The author handles these difficult themes with ease, indicating the strengths and weakness of North Korean art and artists … [this is] an informative and entertaining work.
