<< Previous Next >>

Pyongyang - west of river


Pyongyang - west of river
Information sur la photo
Copyright: David Astley (banyanman) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1333 W: 114 N: 2592] (7490)
Genre: Lieux
Média: Couleur
Date de prise de vue: 2005-09-14
Catégories: Architecture
Appareil photographique: Nikon D100, Nikkor AF-S 24-120/3.5-5.6G ED, UV
Exposition: f/8, 1/250 secondes
Versions: version originale
Date de soumission: 2005-11-03 4:30
Vue: 8533
Favoris: 1 [voir]
Points: 22
[Ligne directrice - Note] Note du photographe
Looking in the other direction from the top of the Tower of the Juche Idea, the Central District of Pyongyang is dominated by the Grand People’s Study House on Namsan Hill on the west side of Kim Il Sung Square. Built in 1982, it has more than 600 rooms, covering about 100,000 square metres, for reading, lectures and “Q&A sessions with intellectuals”. The Grand People’s Study House has space for 30 million books (my guides didn’t know how many there actually were) and up to 12,000 people can use it each day. When someone wants a book, they order it from a librarian, who calls it up from the library via an “inertial remote carriage device.”

In this picture you can see the lines of hundreds of people standing in Kim Il Sung Square in front of the Grand People’s Study House. They are practicing for the annual celebrations that are held on October 10 each year which is ‘Founding of the Workers’ Party of Korea Day’. When I was there in mid-September, the whole city seemed to be preparing for this big event in which everyone in the country participates. Everywhere I went there were hundreds of people on foot and on bicycles going to and from practice sessions being held in different parts of the city – all carrying batons with brightly coloured plastic streamers attached to one end.

Shortly after taking this photograph, we drove along the road through the middle of the square. I asked if we could stop and take a photograph of the people practicing, but I was advised that the working people do not like to be photographed.

The building with the yellow roof that looks like an inverted cone, behind and slightly to the left of the Grand People’s Study House, is an ice rink, and between the two there is a large gymnasium. There are an amazing number of stadiums and gymnasiums in Pyongyang. On Chongchun Street in the Mangyongdea District alone there are another eight gymnasiums at least as large (for volleyball, basketball, weightlifting, handball, table tennis, badminton, athletics and ‘combat sports’) as well as a football stadium, taekwondo hall and an indoor swimming complex. Pyongyang is one city that could probably host an Olympics Games without having to build anything new – but not that that is likely to happen in the near future!

Again, as with yesterday’s upload, there’s nothing special from technical perspective about this shot. It’s just to give you an idea of what Pyongyang looks like. I will post something more ‘artistic’ for my next post from North Korea. In terms of composition there was not much I could do to follow the ‘two thirds’ rule of composition for this one. The Tower of the Juche Idea is built exactly in line with the centre of the Grand People’s Study House, and all the buildings around Kim Il Sung Square are symmetrical, so I decided it was best to compose this with the Grand People’s Study House slap bang in the middle.

Usual PP: cropped, adjusted levels, contrast, saturation and USM.
ChrisJ, ktanska, gaby, capthaddock, kensimage, sarju, ahmet54, jbweasle, pamastro, L2K, sandrasilva, Polonaise, perfil, mlewan, osh, repaulson, linask, sheepyak, Serendipity, munte trouve(nt) cette note utile
Only registered TrekEarth members may rate photo notes.
Ajouter Critique [Ligne directrice - Critique ] 
Seuls les membres de TrekEarth enregistrés peuvent rédiger des critiques.
Discussions
Aucune
Vous devez vous authentifier pour démarrer une discussion.

Critiques [Translate]

  • Great 
  • ChrisJ Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 8565 W: 916 N: 11537] (57444)
  • [2005-11-03 4:47]

Hi David

I did a unit on Korea at university last year. It's not too hard to work out where all the money is going, with all the new construction visible here, & why the ordinary people are starving in famines. Good sharpness & pov.

Hi David,
Interesting contrast with yesterdays photo. I agree with you; the square dictates the composition. Nice atmospheric perspective. And lots of pastel colours on those buildings. Not exactly to my taste, but better than plain grey.
Kari

  • Great 
  • gaby Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1420 W: 45 N: 1555] (19769)
  • [2005-11-03 6:56]

Hi David - very amazing and very interesting (but very sad) -
Thanks
Rgs
Gaby

Hi David - once again an outsatnding and informative look at a bizarre place most of us will never see. The big square has even more of a prison courtyard feel than Tiananmen square.

The Study House looks like some kind of hybrid between Stalinist concrete architecture and traditional Korean. If so, the result is not too bad, I have to say. And at least they seem to have kept some green and open space in the city, we could learn from that, if not much else in that country. All those preparations for forced celebrating reveal something closer to the truth. Thanks for giving us this look inside a place that's mostly a mystery to us outsiders, in terms of daily life.

The two thirds rule was never meant to be universal, you're wise not to use it here! It's a well-composed shot.

Regards, Ken.

  • Great 
  • PeterC Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 365 W: 89 N: 261] (2242)
  • [2005-11-03 12:24]

David,
An intruiging insight into a place that fascinates me. I love the way your documenting your trip there. Great reportage work.

  • Great 
  • jinju Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3167 W: 96 N: 1601] (14241)
  • [2005-11-04 4:01]

Fantastic stuff David,

this is a strange city. I can feel the eeriness of it, its almost creepy. I wonder how many of those buildings are empty shells put up for show. Just like the multi lane cities built as if it was Seoul, busting at the seems. Too bad we cant see the hige pyramid shaped 100 story hotel that is just empty and sits uselssly in the heart of the city.

  • Great 
  • sarju Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1139 W: 52 N: 1278] (5300)
  • [2005-11-04 9:36]

Hi David
what a splendid views you seem to have captured from Korea
thanks for enlightening us on TE
cheers ... sarju

Hi David,
your pics of North Korea are very interesting.
Keep on posting.
Kind regards,
Roland

Hello David, this is a good shot from the top of the tower showing the focal point of Pyongyang. It shows well the grand design of the city with the buildings symmetrically arranged around the square. Interestingly if you stand in the square and look across the river you similarly see the tower symmetrically "framed" by buildings.

hi David

Very interesting the architecture we can find on north Korea, the mood is incredible here very strange.
well done
greg

Hello David!fantastic colours and great composition.Absolutely fantastic.Well done.
I wish you BEST.Sandra

Calibration Check
















0123456789ABCDEF