North Korean 'Propaganda' is the real viral hit of 2012
"Propaganda 2012 is a 95-minute video that presents itself as a North Korean educational video intending to inform the citizens of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea about the dangers of Western propaganda. The video's uploader, known as 'Sabine', reiterates a statement she gave to the Federal Police regarding the movie's origins. She explains how the film was given to her by people claiming to be North Korean defectors whilst she was visiting Seoul. ...
Although the origins of Propaganda 2012 are contentious, its power lies in the fact that much of its content attempts to avoid invented history. Considering the media buzzwords associated with the alleged country of origin, Propaganda 2012 turns a mirror onto the Western world and seeks to criticise its entire history and culture – from the genocide and imperialism of its past, to the interventionism and consumerism of the modern era. The movie's overall attitude seems to express an intention to educate, shock and caution its audience into realising that people in the West are governed by a super-rich ruling class (The one per cent), who do not offer them true democracy; but instead seek to invade and assimilate as many countries as possible, whilst distracting their population with a smokescreen of consumerism, celebrity, and reality television. This message is spread across the video's 17 chapters, which each attempt to focus on specific examples of Western indoctrination and oppression. The film is regularly punctuated by commentary from an anonymous North Korean professor, and quotes from Western thinkers such as Noam Chomsky and Richard Dawkins. ...
Propaganda 2012 is certainly a film where the audience takes from it what they bring to it, and a variety of emotions can be induced upon viewing. Laughter, cynicism, outrage, contemplation and reflection would all be adequate responses to the video's tough, and often graphic, portrayal of the complex world in which we are living. Yet perhaps the most important thing to remember when watching the film is that the video is available to view uncensored, on a largely unregulated world wide web, and merely represents an extreme end of the vast spectrum of free expression. Therefore, during this festive end to an austere year, enjoy Propaganda 2012 as an interesting and beguiling alternative voice that cries loudly against the dangers of religious consumerism, and reminds us to remain humble and reflect on those less fortunate than ourselves."
(Kieran Turner-Dave, 17 December 2012, Independent Arts Blogs)
CONTRIBUTOR
David ReidSHARE
The Korea Institute of Design Promotion
"Korea (South) has recognized design as the future growth engine and has introduced 'Building a Creative Design Nation' as a new government project. The Korea Institute of Design Promotion (KIDP) lies at the center of national design promotion policies. KIDP has been putting its best efforts into promoting Korea as a global leader in the design community and as a result, has created a global design portal site that will compile design information in an integrated and systematic way.
Global DesignDB.com is an integrated online service system set up to manage the latest design information for designers and others involved in the global design industry. It will act as a 'Design Navigator' for anyone interested in design. We look forward to your continuous interests and support."
(The Korea Institute of Design Promotion)
Fig.1 Suzy Sunsook Cho, Package Design [http://suzycho.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/package-design.html].
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Simon PerkinsSHARE
The regionalisation of knowledge in Korean design education
"Multimedia techniques change very quickly in Korea. All of the universities have made new departments for interactive media and have had more instructors who are involved in high technology such as Web design, game character design, motion graphics, and moving image design. After the development of the Internet and multimedia games and products, many companies have needed designers with new skills. Today, some schools are combining all of their art departments into one college. For example, one university usually has three colleges of art: one devoted solely to music, one devoted to art and design, and another devoted to human movement and performance. With the development of multimedia technologies, the distinctions between these various field are disappearing. Now, it's common to use motion graphics with dance. Many universities want to expand the art fields while at the same time trying to unite them. It's a good change. If the different arts are all in one college, collaboration is easier. Students can learn new skills from each other and think about their works in other creative ways. There are problems that remain to be addressed ... Most education is based on practical business. Many instructors are second-generation designers, meaning that they learned design from the first generation of Korean designers, who didn't have a sufficient basis for study. Many instructors teach design founded on their direct experiences in the design field rather than on theory, methodology, or intensive creative thinking and experiment. Some design programs focus on multimedia classes instead of teaching basic principals of design-technology is more important than ideas."
(HyunSoo Lim, 13 December 2006)
Fig.1 Minsun Eo (2008). 'Typography and the Rules'; 210 x 297 mm (folded), 594 x 841 mm (unfolded), Inkjet Printing Booklet/Poster; Exhibition at Hongdesign Gallery in Seoul, South Korea
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Simon PerkinsSHARE
Looking at Disability through Creative Senses
"<thisAbility vs. Disability> is an international electronic art exhibition looking upon themes of disability through creative transition of the senses. You can experience and enjoy ten fascinating interactive electronic artworks, including: a painting seen through your hand by the touch of the wind, a digital musical instrument played by facial gestures, a robot responding to your voice, a table transmitting your hand's touch into light, a block transforming Braille into sound, a harmonic bell playing according to your heartbeat, and so on. We are very pleased to invite you to experience this unique electronic art show."
(Curator: Byeong Sam Jeon)
CONTRIBUTOR
Simon PerkinsSHARE
ICANN Bringing the Languages of the World to the Global Internet
"Seoul: The first Internet addresses containing non-Latin characters from start to finish will soon be online thanks to today's approval of the new Internationalized Domain Name Fast Track Process by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers board.
'The coming introduction of non-Latin characters represents the biggest technical change to the Internet since it was created four decades ago,' said ICANN chairman Peter Dengate Thrush. 'Right now Internet address endings are limited to Latin characters – A to Z. But the Fast Track Process is the first step in bringing the 100,000 characters of the languages of the world online for domain names.'
ICANN's Fast Track Process launches on 16 November 2009. It will allow nations and territories to apply for Internet extensions reflecting their name – and made up of characters from their national language. If the applications meet criteria that includes government and community support and a stability evaluation, the applicants will be approved to start accepting registrations.
' This is only the first step, but it is an incredibly big one and an historic move toward the internationalization of the Internet ,' said Rod Beckstrom, ICANN's President and CEO. 'The first countries that participate will not only be providing valuable information of the operation of IDNs in the domain name system, they are also going to help to bring the first of billions more people online – people who never use Roman characters in their daily lives.'
IDNs have been a topic of discussion since before ICANN's inception. It's taken years of intense technical testing, policy development, and global co-operation to prepare the Fast Track process for its coming launch.
'Our work on IDNs has gone through numerous drafts, dozens of tests, and an incredible amount of development by volunteers since we started this project. Today is the first step in moving from planning and implementation to the real launch,' said Tina Dam, ICANN's Senior Director for IDNs. 'The launch of the Fast Track Process will be an amazing change to make the Internet an even more valuable tool, and for even more people around the globe.'"
(Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers, 30 October 2009)
[Another step towards localisation - further reducing the expectation of universal top-level domain names.]
CONTRIBUTOR
Simon PerkinsSHARE
