Unperson
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Dates2017 - Ongoing
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Author
- Topics Portrait, Documentary, War & Conflicts
- Location Seoul, South Korea
The project "Unperson" is looking at the notion of identity in the Korean Peninsula. After almost 70 years of ongoing war status, very few people are left with the memories of one Korea.
First Chapter - Koreans
In George Orwell ś 1984 , an unperson is someone who has been vaporized, whose record has been erased. The people I chose to portray made the decision to disappear from their own Orwellian world - North Korea. Sometimes for ideological reasons and often by despair, they left behind a life that would disappear forever. The road to South Korea is dangerous and can take years. Some of them won’t make it. The travels of the ones that do are filled with the fear of being arrested and sent back to labor camps. Having arrived in South Korea, they often struggle to find a new identity; Lost between their North Korean past and South Korean future.
To reflect this incredible transition, I chose to portray these defectors on an analog material that is not supposed to exist. Just as their situation, the negative of a polaroid is not supposed be usable. It is only obtained through a series of chemical purifications of the back paper that reveal the original polaroid image. The result is often uncertain, dirty and imperfect. This series of portraits is the first chapter of a project reflecting on North Korea, on the notion of borders and identity.
Second Chapter - The River ( On going )
The second chapter of this project is currently ongoing. The goal is to photograph the two rivers ( Yalu & Tumen ) that are bordering North Korea and China. Crossing this river is the first step of 99% of North Korea defections. Most of the time, after their getting on the Chinese side. The defectors are never coming back into North Korea. During the dry season, the level of the water could be less than a meter making the crossing quite a simple but crucial step.
The photos will be taken on an analog camera and the film will be then damaged chemically to show the border between the mysterious North Korea and the rest of the world.
