Gyeonggi Provincial Government publishes “Korean War 60th-Year Anniversary Photograph Collection” with rare pictures of the war. Publication party at Ramada Hotel on August 16th, Photo exhibition at the provincial government complex on August 19th,

– The Gyeonggi Provincial Government and the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation have published 1950 0625, a photo collection that contains rare pictures taken by Korean and foreign war correspondents and photographers as well as other hitherto unpublished war documents. – GNewsPlus

The Korean War 60th Year Anniversary Photograph Collection, deemed to be the leading compilation of photographic material concerning the Korean War, has been published.

The Gyeonggi Provincial Government and the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation have published “1950 0625,” a photograph collection which contains rare pictures taken by Korean and foreign war correspondents and photographers as well as hitherto unpublished war-related documents, and will hold a publication party at Ramada Hotel in Suwon City on August 16th.

The photo collection offers a fresh view on the Korean War through its compilation of photos, documents, and newspaper reports on this historic episode from the perspective of Gyeonggi Province.

– American soldiers on the defense line of Nakdong River (1950; David Douglas Duncan, upper left). A US solider comforts a fellow soldier grieving for a dead comrade (upper right). A newly discovered photo of student soldiers boarding a military train (down). © GNewsPlus For the collection, 600 rare items were carefully selected from 10,000 photographs of the Korean War. The volume is the largest collection of the Korea War-related photos ever published so far in and outside of Korea.

Of particular note, the collection contains photos taken by Korean War correspondents such as Yim Eung-Shik, Yi Myong-Dong, Choi Gyeong-Deok, Jeong Do-Seon, and Choi Jang-Hee, as well as those by twenty-five legendary photographers such as David Douglas Duncan and Margaret Bourke-White, both of whom worked for Life and won Pulitzer Prizes for their photos of the Korean War. Such rare images make the volume the leading photo collection of the Korean War.

Moreover, approximately 100 war-related documents, which had not been previously released to the public, are contained in the volume. One of the documents is a request for Red Army assistance signed by Kim Il-Seong and Pak Heon-Young to be sent to Mao Zedong: it has been preserved in the Anti-US Assistance Memorial Hall in China.

The photograph collection consists of two sub-volumes. The 1st volume shows the war from a human perspective rather than describing it as an ideological or military conflict: Gyeonggi Province is highlighted in the overall progression of the image story.

– “Destroyed Jangan Gate of Suwon Castle” (left) by Yim Eung-Shik is unveiled in the volume. A picture of Boshingak taken in 1950 (right). – GNewsPlus

The 2nd volume reconstructs multiple aspects of the Korean War by showing administrative records of the time, photos of military hardware and outfits, news releases, official announcements, fliers, posters, and slogans. The Gyeonggi Provincial Government and the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation collected the materials in cooperation with the Korean Army, the Institute for Military History Compilation of the Ministry of National Defence, the National Institute of Korean History, and other institutions. Professional advice and rigorous historical research helped in ensuring the objectivity of the photos and documents.

The Gyeonggi Provincial Government and the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation will hold a publication party for 1950 0625 that will be attended by Gyeonggi Governor Kim Moon-Soo, retired General Baek Sun-Yeop – known as the living proof of the Korean War – and the war correspondent Yi Myong-Dong as well as other celebrities.

In addition, during the period of the Defence and Counter-Disaster Equipment Exhibition, a publicity hall for Korean War memorial publications will be operated in which the photo collections and 40 pieces of undisclosed photographs will be displayed.

-GNewsPlus News | Yi Dong-Ryeol yeory@kg21.net

http://gnews.gg.go.kr/news/news_detail.asp?number=201008131744214706C049&s_code=C049