BEFORE THE LAW

Kapfer’s commissioned work for “Garden of Learning” takes the North Korean dynasty as its subject. In a slightly abstracted form and with intentionally simple means, the artist recreates key elements from the monuments (including their particular iconography) which the Kim family uses to legitimize and glorify their rule.

Kapfer’s repertoire consists of the following elements:

1) The door of the Juche Tower with its Kim Il Sung flower. The entire monument is dedicated to North Korea’s idiosyncratic ideology of self-sufficiency and willful isolation. The tower consists of 25,550 granite blocks (each one representing a day in the life of Kim Il Sung).

2) The door of the Reunification Monument, with the medal for veterans of the Korean War (note the map showing all of Korea!). Magnolias, the national flower of North Korea, adorn the corners of the door leaf.

3) A tiger from the alleged tomb of Tangun. This mythical figure from 4000 years ago is said to have founded the first Korean kingdom.Even as far back as the Joseon Dynasty, Tangun was called on to represent the origins of the Korean people. In the 20th century, he was claimed by Korean nationalists in the fight against the official Japanese doctrine that sought to legitimize Japan’s colonial rule in Korea. By command of Kim Il Sung, the remains of Tangun were discovered in 1993.

4) The monumental door (3.6 x 6.3 m) to the International Friendship Exhibition, dedicated to “Beloved Leader” Kim Jong Il in Myohyang. This exhibition is a cabinet of wonders featuring over 19,000 gifts from statesmen, diplomats and Juche fans. It boasts everything from Japanese electronics to a stuffed crocodile holding a tablet with cups – a gift sent by the Nicaraguan Sandinista in 1982.

Kapfer’s formal language underscores both the self-made character and obsessive drive of the dynasty machine.Symbols like the different types of flowers allegorizing leaders and nations, for example (magnolia, kimjongilia, kimilsungia) were virtually created out of nothing. As signs, they come to represent a power that is either total or non-existent.