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    Postcolonial Architecture through North Korean Modes: Namibian Commissions of the Mansudae Overseas Project

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    Kirkwood_ku_0099M_11463_DATA_1.pdf (3.448Mb)
    Issue Date
    2011-05-31
    Author
    Kirkwood, Meghan
    Publisher
    University of Kansas
    Format
    127 pages
    Type
    Thesis
    Degree Level
    M.A.
    Discipline
    History of Art
    Rights
    This item is protected by copyright and unless otherwise specified the copyright of this thesis/dissertation is held by the author.
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    Abstract
    Since the 1970s the North Korean design firm, the Mansudae Overseas Project, has completed commissions for public sculptures and buildings in eight different African nations. Though these commissions incorporate subject matter specific to their location, the works replicate an aesthetic that is distinctly North Korean. Examples of this visual parallel may be observed in iconic Mansudae works found in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia: the new Namibian State House (2006), the Heroes' Acre Memorial (2002) and the Independence Museum (under construction). This paper argues that the decision by Namibian leaders to award architectural tenders to the Mansudae Overseas Project was not based on economic concerns or preference for Mansudae designs, but was instead motivated by a desire to emulate the authority, cohesiveness and directed nature of a visual culture specific to Pyongyang. Here, the construction of Mansudae-designed buildings and monuments asserts a decisive break with architecture and memorials associated with colonial regimes, and in doing so foregrounds the authority and modernity of the postcolonial government. Thorough consideration of commissions of the Mansudae Overseas Project in urban capitals such as Windhoek expands the limited body of research on the establishment of a postcolonial vernacular in African urban settings.
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/1808/10702
    Collections
    • Art History Dissertations and Theses [52]
    • Theses [3772]

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    Contact KU ScholarWorks
    785-864-8983
    KU Libraries
    1425 Jayhawk Blvd
    Lawrence, KS 66045
    785-864-8983

    KU Libraries
    1425 Jayhawk Blvd
    Lawrence, KS 66045
    Image Credits
     

     

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