Rare North Korean Paintings Exhibit in the US

North Korean art doesn’t frequently make an appearance outside of the restrictive boundaries of the DPRK, but an all-North Korean painting exhibition has just landed in U.S. soil thanks to the effort of artist-turned-curator B.G. Muhn. Contemporary North Korean Art: The Evolution of Socialist Realism, on view at the Katzen Arts Center at the American University Museum, highlights 50 years of the Chosonwha genre, which fuses Oriental ink wash painting and rice paper to depict monumental scenes of DPRK history.

Muhn, who was born in South Korea but also holds American citizenship, had surprisingly little difficulty in making visits to the DPRK and organizing the exhibition: “I shared my serious scholarly intentions to research and introduce the form of Chosonhwa to the outside world, and was met with a positive response. Over multiple visits to Pyongyang, I built working relationships with North Korean museums, state-run artist studios, and their artists,” Muhn explains.

“In regards to my South Korean heritage, I do not think there was a disadvantage in organizing the exhibition, largely due to my citizenship as a Korean-American. It was actually a huge advantage in the process of conducting in-depth research and facilitating the show because I understood the culture and history, and most of all, I could freely communicate in Korean.”

Despite the edges provided by linguistic and cultural familiarity and a supportive response from parts of the DPRK artistic community, Muhn did encounter some expected opposition throughout the process. “I did not receive much practical support from DPRK officials, including the ones at Masundae Art Studio, the biggest collective art studio in the world. DPRK officials in Pyongyang even seemed somewhat skeptical about a North Korean show happening in Washington,” elaborates Muhn. But despite mild governmental resistance and skepticism, the fruits of the curator’s labors have come to bear magnificently at American University.

Contrary to what one might expect, there is no stigma towards art or artists in Kim Jong-Un’s dictatorship. Muhn’s many visits to the DPRK over the past five years have been incredibly culturally eye opening in regards to artist important in North Korean culture: “I was totally stunned when I discovered how art functions in society and how well artists are respected. Artists go through intense competition and years of training in order to be selected as a Mansudae artist,” Muhn tells The Creators Project. “Their pride in being an artist comes from the belief that their skills and creativity are utilized to serve the country and the people.”

At their core, North Korean artists are similar to their global counterparts, with a few inevitable differences imposed by the societal context they live in: “While it is true that the subject matter of their art is not as varied as for artists in the rest of the world, I witnessed their passion to be creative, individual, and to excel as artists, within that boundary. In that sense, DPRK artists are not that much different from any other artist. However, they are salaried, and their achievements are rewarded through official recognition of their service including honorary titles and reverence from other artists, not with widespread fame or wealth.”

Contemporary North Korean Art: The Evolution of Socialist Realism will be on view at American University’s Katzen Arts Center until August 14.

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