To celebrate the 62nd anniversary of the founding of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), which falls on 10 October, the London Embassy of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) organised a reception on 21 September and an art exhibition that day and the next.
A wonderful collection of artworks of different genres was on display, illustrating the Korean people’s revolutionary history, continuing struggle against imperialism, achievements in socialist construction, peaceful and happy life, the scenic beauty of their country and its wildlife, and their friendship with the peoples of other countries.
Typical titles of the artworks, produced by artists of the Korea Paekho Trading Corporation, spoke to the Korean people’s needs and aspirations. For example ‘The People’s Army should stand in the fore’ and ‘Give priority to agriculture’.
Short speeches were made by DPRK Ambassador Comrade Ja Song Nam and Comrade Pak Chang Sop, a merited People’s Artist and Kim Il Sung Prize winner, who is President of Paekho and head of their visiting delegation.
The Paekho Trading Corporation was established in 1970 and, among its diversified activities, it has become especially known for its vast panoramas and dioramas, which are to be found in Pyongyang’s Korean Revolution Museum and Fatherland Liberation War Museum, depicting epic scenes from Korea’s struggles against Japanese, American and British imperialism.
Paekho also has an honourable record in promoting Korea’s solidarity with anti-imperialist struggles around the world. It created dioramas in Egypt and Syria depicting the Arab people’s struggle in the October 1973 war against Israel, as well as one in Iraq depicting an ancient battle against foreign invaders. It was also commissioned to produce portraits of Presidents Hafez al-Assad of Syria and Gamal Abdul Nasser of Egypt.
In Africa, Paekho artists have built numerous statues, including those of Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the first President of Ghana, and of the two greatest heroes of the Congolese people’s struggle, both of whom were murdered by agents of imperialism, Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba and President Laurent Kabila.
The London exhibition attracted great attention from artistic, cultural, business and political circles, and among those at the reception were central committee members of CPGB-ML, as well as the former Director and the Curator of the Chinese and Korean collections at the British Museum.
Being the second exhibition of art from the DPRK to be held in London in just the last few months, it no doubt made a significant contribution to breaking down the wall of lies with which imperialism and its hired media seeks to isolate and denigrate the DPRK and to building friendship, mutual understanding and normal business and cultural ties between the peoples of our two countries.
