Skip to main content
Opening ceremony of the anniversary celebrations of Kim Il Sung at the Kim Il Sung Stadium, Pyongyang, April, 2000
Opening ceremony of the anniversary celebrations of Kim Il Sung at the Kim Il Sung Stadium, Pyongyang, April, 2000
Opening ceremony of the anniversary celebrations of Kim Il Sung at the Kim Il Sung Stadium, Pyongyang, April, 2000

Opening ceremony of the anniversary celebrations of Kim Il Sung at the Kim Il Sung Stadium, Pyongyang, April, 2000

Date2000
MediumInkjet print
Dimensionsoverall: 16 in x 48 in
Credit LineMuseum purchase
Object number2015:242
About the ArtistPierre Bessard works in photography primarily as a reporter and publisher. On assignment as a photojournalist, Bessard had the rare opportunity to capture the working-class people and government officials in North Korea. Contrary to images produced by the government, his black-and-white photographs portray the artist’s encounters during his travels.
Pierre Bessard has lived in France, China, and Korea. He has worked as a photo reporter for international press agencies worldwide such as AFP, as the Head of Photography at VSD magazine, as a documentary producer at CAPA/ARTE, and as a photojournalist at REA news agency. Bessard has published two monographs with Blue Kingfisher, Behind China’s Growth in 2008 and Wuhan Boiler Company Workers in 2011. These photographs were part of a 2015 exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Photography titled North Korean Perspectives.