Or North Korea
A tongue-in-cheek rebrand of North Korea, looking into the hidden beauty behind the culture, art, and architecture of a secretive country to build a brand.
Feel like dancing?
Research into North Korean culture and history was the most interesting aspect of the project and lead me to produce posters based on key insights I had learned. Individualism in NK is highly regulated, similarly to how haircuts and clothing styles must fall within what has been defined by the government, dancing is controlled also.
Like a uniform?
The large military displays in Pyongyang are known for their over-the-top parades. Using the imagery from these events in a subverted and ironic context changes the visual tone of the photography, this is something I used accross the brand.
Room With a view?
Facade shopfronts and architectural falsities are overly common in the capital, buildings were constructed after the Korean war mostly as spectacles for outsiders. Some of these buildings never existed in the first place, paintings of what the view would have been from atop a large hotel were used for propaganda.
The Juche principle of self-reliance, developed by Kim Il-Sung during North Korea’s “military first” government is embodied by the symbol of a flame.
Using this symbol as inspiration to create an icon that personifies a light-hearted spirit is the most opposite use of this ideology I could envision, this led to the creation of the logo as it is now.