북한의 시각매체에 재현된 금강산 이미지

Abstract

Mount Geumgang has been a symbolic space for building a peaceful regime and accelerating inter-Korean exchanges. This study examines the ways Mount Geumgang has been represented by investigating the images of this iconic mountain that appeared in North Korean visual media. This essay scrutinizes changes in the perception of Mount Geumgang by analyzing newspaper articles published between 1950 and 2019 and examines diverse visual materials to probe the representation of Mount Geumgang as a tourism resource and the visualization of the famous tale about “Eight Fairies in Mount Geumgang (Geumgangsan Palseonnyeo).” When North Korea underwent a reconstruction project after the Korean War (1950-53), and the tale of "Eight Fairies in Mount Geumgang" has been used as a means of cultural exchange between the socialist states since the 1950s. In the 1960s, Mount Geumgang became a paradise of labor and nature in fairy tales for increasing productivity. This symbolic mountain, however, became a stage of revolutionary opera in the 1970s. This setting aimed to glorify the socialist system led by Kim Il-sung. In the 1980s, the socialist systems in Eastern Europe collapsed, and North Korea's economy worsened. Under this circumstance, Mount Geumgang turned into a lucrative tourist site. Mount Geumgang changed from a fierce battlefield to a peaceful place for inter-state exchanges depending on the shifting inter-Korean relationship. Unlike South Korea that focuses on the beautiful scenery of Mount Geumgang, North Korean visual media promote both the well-known tale about “Eight Fairies in Mount Geumgang” and the superb beauty of Mount Geumgang. North Korea utilized the images of the eight fairies to educate the people and empower their self-image. Lee Kun-young, for instance, incorporated the famous motif of the eight fairies into his facade design of the Pyongyang Grand Theater. This case study shows different approaches of North and South Korea to Mount Geumgang. It will improve the mutual understandings of the two Koreas and their cultural differences.