Week of October 24, 2009
Sun MuSun Mu is called the Faceless Artist because he fears his family in North Korea will be punished if his true identity is ever revealed. Photo by Jason Strother.
Description
According to an artist who goes by the name Sun Mu, art in North Korea exists only to honor the nation's tyrannical regime. Sun Mu is a defector who now lives in South Korea. His paintings, which are critical of his former rulers, have gotten a lot of attention in his new homeland. But because of the fear of reprisal against the family he left behind, he keeps his true name and image hidden. That's earned him the nickname of the Faceless Artist.
Jason Strother dropped by Sun Mu's studio and sent this report from Seoul.