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| Artist Oh Sung-cheol, who defected from North Korea seeking creative freedom, poses for a photo in front of his works in his studio in Eunpyeong District, northwestern Seoul, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Kwon Mee-yoo |
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Artist Oh Sung-cheol continuously challenges himself to explore the essence of life. The 44-year-old artist has been known for his unique background: he worked for the propaganda department of North Korea's military before he escaped the reclusive state.
"Artists in a socialist state are no more than technicians who work a little more comfortably than physical laborers," Oh said during an interview with The Korea Times at his studio in Eunpyeong District, northwestern Seoul, Tuesday.
"I have liked drawing and painting since I was little, and in North Korea, your school teacher documents your disposition. That's how I was chosen by the propaganda department," he said.
Oh said that there is virtually no printer in the North Korean military and everything put on the walls ― from propaganda posters to notices ― is created by propaganda artists.
"There is no creative freedom in North Korea. Drafts or sketches of posters are handed down from the Mansudae Art Studio and when those are assigned to brigades of propaganda artists, we had to imitate those with limited supplies of paint. Sometimes we bartered rice from the military warehouse for paint at pigment companies," he said.
"Sometimes I painted tigers on Mount Paektu when military officers moved into a new apartment and needed something to hang on the wall… I learned how to paint in North Korea, but I was no more than a propaganda tool. It is systematic and there was no room for my thoughts."
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| Artist Oh Sung-cheol, who defected from North Korea seeking creative freedom, poses for a photo in front of one of his works in his studio in Eunpyeong District, northwestern Seoul, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Kwon Mee-yoo |
Oh went to university to be discharged from the military after some 10 years of being a military propaganda artist. But he became aware of his thirst for intellectual and creative freedom.
After going to China several times to earn money as part of the military's security department, Oh decided to defect to South Korea and headed to the South's Consulate General in China.
He had to spend three years in the basement of the consulate before he was cleared to be sent to Seoul.
After a decade, Oh recalls such hard times as something he needed.
"When you learn about life, you need time to reflect on yourself. When you are in the outside world, you don't have to look at yourself. As I was confined at the consulate for years, I contemplated about myself as well as about art. If I hadn't been at the consulate, I might not be painting now," he said.
After arriving in South Korea, Oh studied art at Hannam University in Daejeon and experimented in various ways pursuing his spirit in art, including making his "Spoon" series.
"Spoon is a common tool we use to eat, a tool we use to satisfy desires and survive. I chose it because I think it reflects the basics of human life," he said.
His latest theme is Sisyphus, the character from Greek mythology who is forever punished to rolling a boulder up a hill.
"I think he represents human life. If we learn something from such punishment, we can find pleasure amid eternal punishment from the gods," he said.
Recently, Oh embarked on a new adventure to broaden his horizons. He has been taking English courses at the British Council in Korea, as the British Embassy in Seoul provides courses to North Korean defectors.
"As I studied more and more, I wanted to learn other languages with different histories," Oh said. "I am still at the elementary level, but I am slowly figuring out English, like why I wasn't able to understand what people say in English compared to what I learned in the books."
When he gets a better hold of the language, Oh wants to collaborate with artists from around the world.
"I am pursuing genuine art, not art for money or a certain purpose. I could join hands with artists abroad who share the same ideas as I do if I can speak English fluently," Oh said.
"I can speak some Chinese and after learning English, I'd like to study Spanish," he said.
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