The horrifying painted image that exploded from the front cover of Time magazine on 12 September 1983 brought to public realisation one of the single greatest tragedies of the Cold War – the downing of Korean Air Lines Flight 007 (KAL007) on the first of that month. The civilian flight from New York City to Seoul, via Anchorage, was approaching its final destination when it was … Continue reading A Cold War Air Tragedy in Art
As Stalin grew ever more paranoid and unpredictable in the final months of his life, the ailing dictator demanded that Walter Ulbricht’s Communist government in the German Democratic Republic consolidate its control over the country by intensifying the process of Sovietization. In the summer of 1952, land confiscations, tax hikes, and a public pay freeze […]
While visiting the Things Fall Apart exhibition (part of the recent “Red Africa” season) at Calvert 22 in London, I was intrigued by Onejoon Che’s model of the African Renaissance Monument. This was one of a series of models and photographs of African monuments on display by the South Korean artist. Firstly, I was struck by how closely the design for the monument mirrored Soviet statuary and … Continue reading The African Renaissance Monument, Built by North Korea
What: Sculpture of the Martyred Intellectuals Where: Mujibnagar Memorial Complex, Meherpur, Bangladesh The Bangladesh Liberation War between East Pakistan and West Pakistan ended on 16 December 1971 with the establishment of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh in the east. Although only lasting 9 months, the war was shocking in its brutality. During a series of genocidal atrocities perpetuated by the Pakistan Army against the Bengali … Continue reading What & Where: Sculpture of Bangladesh’s Martyred Intellectuals
On 25 June 1950 North Korea surprised its southern neighbour with a sudden invasion, sparking the start of the Korean War. As the United States entered the fray on the side of South Korea, while China lent support to its communist ally, a bloody battle ensued that lasted until 1953. In 1994 the War Memorial of Korea opened in Seoul. As visitors approach they are … Continue reading The Divided Brothers of the Korean War
In the words of then-Senator John F. Kennedy, ‘October 23, 1956 is a day that will live forever in the annals of free men and nations. It was a day of courage, conscience and triumph. No other day since history began has shown more clearly man’s eternally unquenchable desire to be free, whatever the odds against success, whatever the sacrifice required’. One of the most … Continue reading Uprising Against Hungary’s Sculpture
There are few more magical sights than the view from the top of Petřín Hill in Prague, looking down over the rooftops of the Czech capital in the shadow of Petřínská rozhledna, the Czech answer to Paris’s Eiffel Tower. But taking the scenic walk down, lost in Bohemian reverie, visitors are suddenly faced with an altogether less picturesque vision. Six bronze figures descend the steps, … Continue reading What & Where: Prague’s Memorial to the Victims of Communism
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