[Steady Reign]

A picture is worth a thousand words. This seems to be true for every image I’ve seen from Eric Lafforgue who’s a freelance photographer from Toulouce, France. I stumbled upon his work before but recently checked back in to find his new set of images while on a trip to North Korea.

Now, I’m not too familiar with the current events there now but I do know it’s one of the last standing single-party states. With Eric’s recent pictures, it gives you a first person view into how life is there. I find it difficult not compare their lifestyle under such a different rule to our own here in the states since they are vastly different. It’s truly an eye opener for me to see how untouched everything there is. There’s close to zero affect taken from the rest of the world here because of the censorship and lack of free speech given.

In any case, I thought I’d share some of the great images that I’ve recently enjoyed from Eric. They all individually tell a unique story of their own.

Make sure to click the image for an enlarged version to view. ( Commentary for images are all by Eric Lafforgue.)

North Korean citizens and soldiers participate in celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the founding of North Korea in Pyongyang, September 9, 2008, in this picture distributed by North Korea’s official news agency KCNA, September 10, 2008.

In this photo released by China’s Xinhua News Agency, female soldiers march across the Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, while citizens hold up colorful bundles to form a large display on Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2008.

North Korean soldiers parade through Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2008.

A small gathering of North Korean soldiers in an informal moment. Eric Lafforgue: “Not an easy task to shoot a smiling soldier!”

A woman carrying a baby on her back rides on a scooter with a North Korean soldier along the banks of the Yalu River near the town of Qing Cheng on September 12, 2008.

The highways in North Korea are huge and carless. Planes could land there. You can even see kids playing in the middle of the road. Security is a major problem because children and old people are not used to seeing cars, so they cross over the roads at any time, without watching out for oncoming traffic. The only cars you can see sometimes on highways are military ones, and most of them are stopped by the side of road, broken down. Or you can also see brand new Mercedes cars belonging to the North Korean officials passing by at very high speeds.

Young koreans hold up colored display cards to form a background image for a performance of North Korea’s Mass Games on September 12, 2008. The Mass Games are designed to entertain or celebrate holidays, and place emphasis on group dynamics rather than individual prowess. This particular show’s name is “Prosper the Motherland!”, dedicated to the 60th Anniversary of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, celebrated on September 9th.

Public bus in North Korea

Pyongyang view, taken from Yanggakdo hotel. You can find a famous satellite picture on the net showing a map of the Korean peninsula by night, with a huge difference between the north and south. In North Korea, there is no public lighting, and people use very low wattage bulbs in their houses.

On Sundays, cars are not allowed in Pyongyang. Only vehicles belonging to the army and government are allowed on the road. Officials say that it’s to prevent pollution. The intersections are guarded by traffic officers, mostly comprised of cute young women who do strange robotic movements, even if no cars are coming. Privately owned cars are almost unheard of in North Korea.

Leaving the place, the Mass dancing on Kim Il Sung Squar is finished. They won’t lost their shoes like in the fairy tale, but many will lost their Kim Il Sung badge!

Arirang in May day Stadium Pyongyang North Korea

A ray of light during “Prosper Our Country” mass games in Pyongyang stadium.The show is dedicated to the 60th Anniversary of the DPRK celebrated on September 9th. Thousands and thousands of boys and girls made the show.

On April 15, birthday of the late Kim Il Sung, Mass dancing on Kim Il Sung Square. More than 100 000 dancers are standing on the giant square. The audience is invited to join them. The music is performed by a live band.

Show at Mangyongdae School children’s palace. Amazing. I think it’s better to not understand the lyrics of the songs, very patriotic..

Not a common scene in Nk, where people are rather shy, and do not demonstrate in public areas.

Feel free to check out more stunning images from Eric at his website and Flickr.

Show at Mangyongdae School children’s palace. Amazing. I think it’s better to not understand the lyrics of the songs, very patriotic..

This post is tagged Eric Lafforgue, Freelance, Korea, North Korea, Photography, Pictures