I heard about this exhibit a few weeks ago, and I was kind of excited to see it. There is a lot of cool and unique pieces of art, but the one that really stood out to me was Dear Leader by Jonathon Hobin. In this picture, Mr Hobin is portraying Kim Jung Il as a young child in his bedroom. Although Kim Jung Il was kind of a small man in stature, his power was far reaching. In this picture, young Kim is in his room working on his science fair project. With his cardboard mushroom cloud in the background, and the paper radioactive symbols he is cutting out with scissors. It's a stark contrast to the bleak and often dangerous realities of living in North Korea. The picture was unique, and in many ways a commentary of the times.
Tommy
This piece scared me a little bit. The 'innocence' of a child lost in a mindset revolving around nuclear weapons, violence and dictator-like thought. Displaying Kim Jung II as a child took away the monster appearance the adult Kim Jung II can be associated with. ...what does it take to turn an innocent child into a raging tyrant?
ReplyDeleteThis piece scared me too and I didn't get why it was in the exhibit because it seemed like it was portraying more a young aspiring villan.
ReplyDeleteThis picture and the Captain America statue with Saddam Hussein's ripped-off head were the once that were creepiest to me. With a picture like this I could not help to think about the nature nurture effect we have on our younger generation. What is it we do to foster or hinder them from becoming tyrants?
ReplyDeleteI thought that was an interesting piece as well. to me it said that children grow up all the same. It is not like Kim Jung grew up planning nuclear bombs or being a dictator. He was probably a normal kid, who watched cartoons and did arts and crafts. Its when children grow up that they learn about mass destruction and decisions that include war
ReplyDeleteI thought this piece was meant to be contemplated, not feared. I like that the piece branched off the simple idea of a child playing in their room, something we can all relate to, and then developed it into a complex statement. I felt that the piece was almost satirical-it was amounting a feared leader of a country to nothing more than a kid playing with his toys. I thought it was anything but "scary". I do think, however, the piece is meant to evoke a wide range of emotions in it's viewers.
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