Kim Jong Il depicted as Marilyn Monroe in former propaganda artists painting
Some like it hot, but Kim Jong Il in Marilyn Monroes fluttering dress is certainly not what most people have in mind when they think hot.
North Korean artist Song Byeok perfected his portraiture skills painting Kim Jong Il as a propaganda artist for his regime in the 1990s a skill that he puts to use now as a satirical artist, painting the Dear Leader in embarrassing situations such as Monroes subway grate scene from The Seven Year Itch. Hes one of several artist-defectors whose careers have gotten a boost from the dictators death.
Byeok works under a pseudonym, because he fears retaliation against relatives who remain in North Korea. He was selected at age 24 to become an official state propagandist, according to the biography on his Web site. He told Reuters that he was simply handed a sketch of whatever propaganda the state wanted illustrated that day, never meeting Kim Jong Il. He defected in 2002 and now lives in South Korea, where h! e paints propaganda-inspired works that mock the North Korean state and demonstrate his newfound freedom. He will exhibit his work in the U.S. at an Atlanta art center in February.
Byeok isnt the only North Korean propaganda artist whose work is getting a second look after Kim Jong Ils death. Another former propaganda artist who mocks Kim works under a pseudonym, Sun Mu. Both paint the Dear Leader, and they have another subject in common the hollow-eyed children that are called fluttering swallows in North Korea.
But as a new leader takes over in North Korea, could Kim Jung Eun be the next to appear in embarrassing situations in Byeoks art? He tells Reuters hell wait and see, but he has no plans to paint him yet.
Previously:
Kim Jong Il Looking at Things will likely continue beyond its meme-makers death
Kim Jong Ils mourners spark a meme
Kim Jong Ils cultural legacy: Propaganda paintings, communist Godzilla
By Maura Judkis | 12:23 PM ET, 12/28/2011