Shakespeare’s line “All the world’s a stage,” came to mind during my visit to The Spiral of Spectacle: the image bank of Wang Guofeng. Curated by Dr. Xiaoyan Yang and Steven Dragonn, the exhibition is a collection of seamlessly computer manipulated images that takes the staged realities in North Korea a step further.
Upon entry, one is engulfed by a massive print that covers five continuous walls, depicting many thousands of people in the crowd saluting Kim Jong-un, NK’s supreme leader who stands high up on a podium. Due to its size, the faces and not just the bodies of these very “real” people are clearly visible. Wang’s images double-down on the ‘staging,’ firstly, by utilising what is set up by the regime and by following an escort’s ‘guidance,’ then secondly, by photoshopping the exacting image of the artist’s desire. The result is a simultaneously comical and poignant image as the viewer is confronted with Kim Jong-un’s hubris: the supreme leader cares only that he appears to have his country under control, and that a world-famous artist wants to capture this and to show it to the world.
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