ALAIN SCHROEDER
Kim City

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is one of the most isolated and secretive nations ruled by the Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un. It is a society based on an extreme cult of personality and a lot of propaganda.

September 9, 2018, was the 70th anniversary of the creation of DPRK and the city of Pyongyang is on display in both cultural and military domaines.

Story behind;
Visitors are shown only a confined area of Pyongyang; one of modern high-risers in recently constructed districts. Visits to the city’s national monuments are mandatory. Chaperoned and surveilled by two official government guides at all times you are told what to do, what to look at or not and what to photograph and there is no choice but to follow the rules.

So remember when you look at the images, as Magritte, the Belgian surrealist painter, said:

This is not North Korea.

Author
Belgian photojournalist Alain Schroeder (b. 1955) has been working in the industry for over four decades. First as a sports photographer in the 80s, then shooting book assignments and editorial pieces in art, culture and human stories.

In 2013, he uprooted his life, trading-in his shares in Reporters, to pursue life on the road with a camera. Schroeder now travels the world shooting stories focusing on social issues, people and their environment. «I am not a single shot photographer. I think in series,» he says adding, «I strive to tell a story in 10-15 pictures, capturing the essence of an instant with a sense of light and framing.»

He has won many international awards including Nikon Japan, Nikon Belgium, Felix-Schoeller, TPOTY, Istanbul Photo, Days Japan, Trieste Photo, PX3, IPA, MIFA, BIFA, PDN, the Fence, Lens Culture, Siena, POYI and World Press Photo.

Website
https://alainschroeder.myportfolio.com/

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