VOA慢速英语2017--North Korean Art Market Growing

 

Seated under tall windows and wearing simple clothing, North Korean painters are hard at work in China.

The nine artists are putting canvases on picture frames and copying landscape images from computers.

One artist listens to an electronic device as he paints a group of running horses onto his canvas.

The artists, all of them men, have come to the Chinese border town of Dandong from Mansudae Art Studio. That art studio is North Korea's largest producer of art.

Other North Korean artists work in similar businesses along the border.

"Chinese have begun collecting art, and North Korean art is much easier and cheaper for them to obtain," said Park Young-jeong. He is with the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute, a group based in the South Korean capital, Seoul.

Mansudae art studio

The North Korean government operates Mansudae. The art studio creates statutes¹, wall posters and more. United Nations experts say it has built statues and markers in at least 15 African countries. The experts reported in February that a part of the business, called Mansudae Overseas Projects, helps the North Korean government raise money.

A diplomat² at the North’s diplomatic office in Geneva said Mansudae had nothing to do with financing for weapons manufacturing. The Reuters news agency reported that no one from the arts studio could be reached.

The U.N. Security Council banned Mansudae's statue business in 2016. Two months ago, Council members blacklisted the art studio after the North Korean government carried out weapons tests.

Diplomats³ say the U.N. action will prevent the studio from doing business. "With this listing, anything Mansudae produces cannot be bought and should be frozen per the asset freeze," said a Security Council diplomat who did not want to be identified.

What do the Security Council's measures mean for existing Mansudae art? In Beijing, a business called the Mansudae Art Gallery claims to be the studio's official overseas gallery. Its head said the U.N. sanctions have had no effect on his business.

The Dandong Center, on the Chinese border, works with Mansudae, said its chief, Gai Longji. Asked on the day the sanctions took effect if they would hurt the art studio, he did not answer directly.

"We don't do politics," he said. "We do art."

The Reuters news agency spoke⁴ to at least 30 art experts and people who have sold North Korean art. Many said that the market for such art does not earn much money – especially in comparison to the possible billion dollars North Korea raises each year by selling coal and other minerals.

Growing demand in China

In China, the demand for North Korean art has been growing. Dandong is a popular attraction for travelers. Visitors try North Korean food, watch North Korean women sing and dance, and buy North Korean paintings.

Koen De Ceuster teaches Korean studies at Leiden University in The Netherlands. He said Mansudae is not the only business selling North Korean artwork.

"There's studios all across the country," he said.

Other famous studio names include Paekho and the Central Arts Studio.

Even with the sanctions, the art studios are still able to do business, Dandong traders say. Paintings from Mansudae could be sold under the name of an art studio that is yet to be named in U.N. sanctions.

Two businessmen said paintings have long been accepted instead of money in the region.

In the Chinese city of Yanjing, antiques dealer⁶ Zhao Xiangchen said people usually roll up one or two paintings and carry them across the border to him.

Since the sanctions were announced, Zhao said, Chinese customs officials have become more watchful⁷.

"But I'm playing the long game," he said. "I still think there's a huge latent demand for North Korean art in the Chinese market, that's only set to grow."

I'm Lucija Millonig.

And I'm John Russell.

Words in This Story

canvas – n. a specially⁵ prepared piece of cloth on which a picture can be painted by an artist

landscape – n. a picture that shows a natural scene of land or the countryside

studio – n. a place where people go to learn, practice, or study an art (such as singing, dancing, or acting)

cheaper – adj. less costly⁸

obtain – v. to gain or get something

blacklist – v. to say something or someone should be avoided

asset – n. something that is owned by a person or company

sanction – n. an action that is taken or an order that is given to force a country to obey international laws by limiting or stopping trade with that country, by not allowing economic aid for that country, etc. — usually plural⁹?

antique – n. an artwork or object made during an earlier period

region – n. a part of a country, of the world, etc., that is different or separate from other parts in some way?

latent – adj. used to describe something (such as a disease) that exists but is not active or cannot be seen

1 statutes   

成文法( statute的名词复数 )； 法令； 法规； 章程

参考例句：

• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• Each agency is also restricted by the particular statutes governing its activities. 各个机构的行为也受具体法令限制。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

2 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

3 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

6 dealer   

n.商人，贩子

参考例句：

• The dealer spent hours bargaining for the painting.那个商人为购买那幅画花了几个小时讨价还价。
• The dealer reduced the price for cash down.这家商店对付现金的人减价优惠。

7 watchful   

adj.注意的，警惕的

参考例句：

• The children played under the watchful eye of their father.孩子们在父亲的小心照看下玩耍。
• It is important that health organizations remain watchful.卫生组织保持警惕是极为重要的。

8 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

9 plural   

n.复数；复数形式；adj.复数的

参考例句：

• Most plural nouns in English end in's '.英语的复数名词多以s结尾。
• Here you should use plural pronoun.这里你应该用复数代词。