DPR Korea

This is a selection of images from a two-year project surveying North Korea (or ‘DPRK’). Working within the constraints placed upon visitors there, the work seeks to offer a balanced, honest and intimate portrayal of the country and its people in an attempt to discover both what sets them apart from the rest of the world and the common human traits we share with them.

The problem with much of the material we see in North Korea is that it is too Pyongyang-heavy, often by photographers who have been there only once. Yet the capital is not at all representative of the country at large. Consequently series fixated on Pyongyang are almost doomed to depict monumental architecture, the metro, and mass games, providing nothing new and minimal insight into what life in greater North Korea might really be like.

At the same time, some photographers have been unable to resist emphasizing their own 'heroics' in having 'smuggled' images out of Pyongyang, thus shifting the story’s focus to themselves. Yet the reality is that only images of soldiers/construction workers are deemed illegal, and one's camera is not checked when leaving the country. All this has resulted in an often skewed and clichéd understanding of the DPRK.

Photography there is not easy, yet it is possible to see and experience a great deal — the images here were taken in all corners of the country at all times of the year. Over the course of many trips, I have captured images that not only confirm some of the popular clichés — such as the near omnipresence of the Leaders — but also show a lesser-known and more intimate DPRK. There are so many levels to North Korea that to throw everything in with the politics is far too simplistic.

It is hoped that this work digs a little deeper and will open up some unexpected perspectives.