On February 18, Douglas Gabriel the Korea Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow at the GW Institute of Korean Studies gave a lecture on the “State of Grace: The North Korean-Built Angkor Panorama Museum in Light of DPRK-Cambodian Cultural Relations,” diving into the North Korea’s cultural relationship with Cambodia. Moderated by Immanuel Kim, the Korea Foundation and Kim-Renaud Associate Professor of Korean Literature and Culture Studies in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures at the George Washington University, the event included lecture and live interaction sessions.
Cambodia, known for its Angkor Wat and Khmer Rouge, Dr. Gabriel introduced us to art of North in Cambodia. The Angkor Panorama Museum, located within the Angkor Archeological Park, was built by the Mansudae Overseas Project from North Korea. While the museum questionably closed only after four years since its opening, there are much to learn about the culture and relationship between Cambodia and North Korea from the museum.
Mansudae Art Studio located in North Korea, manages all of the country’s art projects and art exports. North Korea has left its footprint in Senegal, Sudan, Madagascar, Tanzania, Namibia and more through the Mansudae Art Project. Mostly boastfully presenting North Korea and its authority through the monumental statues and buildings, Mansudae has maintained its unique neo-classical architecture style. The Angkor Panorama Museum, however, does not portray any of North Korea’s culture or history. Uniquely, the museum was built on brotherly relationship between Kim Il-Sung and Cambodian Prince Norodom Sihanouk who shared the anti-imperialist ideology. The two shared close relationship, recognizing each other’s countries as nation-states. North Korea had financed the museum and accepted the request to build the museum in local content and to include Cambodia’s history and culture instead of those of North Korea.
Inside the museum it leads the visitors to walk through a windy hallways to a panorama room which begins with Cambodians fighting against imperialism to find liberty, then the process of rebuilding the country, and finally ends with a message that shows Cambodia’s prosperity along with the successfully built Angkor Wat.
Furthermore, Dr. Gabriel touched on Sihanouk living in exile in North Korea under Kim Il-Sung’s hospitality. Kim built an enormous resident outside of Pyongyang, with a mixture of Korea and Cambodia’s architect style, just for Sihanouk. During his time in North Korea, Sihanouk filmed a movie in Korean language with North Korean casts, and yet including Cambodian tradition and culture, and containing the message of anti-imperialism. In addition, Sihanouk expanded his artistic skills into music by composing and creating a music album on the theme of friendship with other socialists countries.
Mansudae’s unusual project of promoting the host countries’ tradition and history and Sihanouk’s North Korean movie and friendship-promoting songs, presents North Korea and Cambodia’s strong cultural relationship.
After Dr. Gabriel’s lecture followed a live interaction session in which audiences were able to share their experience and analysis from the museum. The event was very successful attracting viewers from the US, South Korea, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, India, Israel, Japan, Norway, Russian Federation, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
