Wazzup Pilipinas!
As the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) concludes the commemoration of its 50th
anniversary, the Philippines marks the historic occasion by hosting a
contemporary art exhibition featuring ten artists who will represent each ASEAN
member state.
The exhibit titled Ties of History: Art in Southeast Asia is curated by noted art
historian, scholar, and curator Patrick D. Flores.
It will be held simultaneously in three major
art institutions in the Philippines: the Metropolitan Museum of Manila (MET
Manila), the University of the Philippines Vargas Museum, and the Yuchengco
Museum.
The exhibition’s artists from the region will
gather in Manila to open the exhibition on August 8 (MET Manila), 9 (Yuchengco
Museum), and 10 (Vargas Museum) with a series of programs for each venue. The
opening reception of each venue starts at 5pm. The exhibition will be on view
from August 10 to October 6, 2018.
The project is presented by the National
Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) through the Dalubhasaan Para sa Edukasyon sa Sining at Kultura
(DESK) with
the support of the Office of Senator Loren Legarda.
“Ties of history” is a phrase taken from a
document signed by ASEAN’s founding members on August 8, 1967. The document
describes “a region already bound together by ties of history and culture.” A
region that is “conscious that in an increasingly interdependent
world, the cherished ideals of peace, freedom, social justice, and economic
well-being are best attained by fostering good understanding, good
neighbourliness and meaningful cooperation among the countries of the region.” The
document gave birth to the regional organization, which taken as a collective
is the world’s 5th largest economy.
Ties
of History: Art in Southeast Asia is a survey of contemporary art, on the one
hand. On the other, it is a diligent study of a particular practice. The
project selects three works of each artist from the ASEAN countries to be
exhibited in three institutions. This enables the exhibition to present a more
in-depth look into the interests of the artist and allows the audience from
different parts of the city to view the exhibition.
As Flores, who was recently appointed as
Artistic Director of Singapore Biennale 2019, explains, “this undertaking…draws
attention to the thoughtful and sensitive process of artistic transformation
and maturity and tries to avoid the tendency of survey exhibitions to merely
select the most popular or the most accessible.”
“It also reminds us that artistic practice is
not fully formed but rather gleaned in the condition of constant forming. It is
this constant forming that the project endeavors to curate,” he adds.
NCCA Chairman Virgilio S. Almario agrees that
“[t]here is much to gain in gathering the talents of the region in order to
view not only their works but to also reflect on the realities each of them
respond to.” He further emphasizes that “it is a proud moment that the
Philippines initiates this celebration of ASEAN artists.”
Almario also remarks on the importance of the
ASEAN in the current climate. For him, “[the] ASEAN is a unique regional
organization because it aims to be known to the world as one community despite
its diversity in religion, race and culture. In a world troubled by differences
in belief, finding peace may be meditated through art that lets us see the
threads that string us together.”
Senator Loren Legarda, one of the Philippines
leading cultural advocates, expresses her pride with the recent developments in
Philippine contemporary art: “Support for Philippine contemporary art is at its
peak with our participation at the Venice Biennale for four consecutive years
after a 51-year absence, with Dr. Flores as the first curator since our
re-entry. This collaborative endeavor further puts the country at the center of
contemporary art globally, not just in Asia. I invite our ASEAN neighbors to continue
this art project annually or in the form of a biennial in the same manner by
which we host political and economic affairs in ASEAN.”
Featured Artists
Ties
of History: Art in Southeast Asia aims to identify artists from across
generations who have demonstrated both responsiveness and range in relation to
the concerns of aesthetic material and socio-historical contexts.
A contemporary artist based in Singapore
known for her collaborative and multidisciplinary approach to art, Amanda Heng (b. 1951) explores social
issues in the context of Singapore’s inter-cultural social milieu.
Roberto
Feleo (b.
1954) is a seminal Philippine artist whose works are sharp sociohistorical commentaries on Philippine myth and history and creative
investigations into local materials and techniques.
Known for his practice that includes the
use of natural materials and traditional tools used in Indonesian craft, Anusapati (b. 1957) has inspired a younger generation of artists
disposed to respond to craft, modernism, and the environment.
Do
Hoang Tuong (b.
1960) of Vietnam belongs to an influential generation of abstract painters in
the South of Vietnam in the 1990s. From an academic perspective and within the
narrative space of his paintings, he expresses the desire of a founding
condition of a new subjectivity.
Savanhdary
Vongpoothorn (b.
1971) was born in Laos and came to Australia in 1979. Her practice implicates
Lao cultural references interwoven with Australian and other cultural
mediations in a productive space of resettlement.
Working with photography and the moving
image, Chris Chong Chan Fui (b.
1972) from Malaysia questions and redirects how humans
work within such intersecting fields as economics and ecology.
Jedsada
Tangtrakulwong (b.
1972) lives and works in Thailand. His practice is informed by Thai cultural
sign systems and reflects on the delicacy of daily existence.
Min
Thein Sung (b.
1978), born and based in Myanmar, works with and on motifs, media, and
processes inspired by the everyday and his childhood.
Artist and curator Vuth Lyno (b. 1982) from Cambodia is the Co-founding Artistic
Director of Sa Sa Art Projects, an artist-run space initiated by the Stiev
Selapak collective in Phnom Penh. His artistic and curatorial practice is
primarily participatory in nature, exploring collective learning and
experimentation.
Working with organic
materials, Yasmin Jaidin (b. 1987),
a contemporary artist from Brunei, interrogates how these elements are often
overlooked in the context of contemporary life.
Selection Process
A network of practitioners in contemporary
art in the region was consulted in the selection of artists for the exhibition.
These advisors include Ahmad Mashadi, Head of the National University of
Singapore Museum; Khim Ong, Deputy Director, Curatorial Programmes at Nanyang Technological
University Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore (NTU CCA Singapore); Loredana Pazzini-Paracciani,
independent curator, writer, and lecturer of Southeast Asian contemporary art;
and independent curator and scholar Grace Samboh.
Public Program
The public is invited to join an artist talk
and roundtable discussion with the advisors from the region as they discuss
contemporary art in Southeast Asia on August 11 at the MET Museum of Manila.
There will also be a public and education program to feature talks and lectures
by scholars of and practitioners in the region in the duration of the
exhibition’s run.
For details relating to the
exhibition’s education programs, please check our social media pages
@tiesofhistory or email us at info@tiesofhistory.org to be added to our mailing
list.
L-R, clockwise- Ties of History: Art in Southeast Asia featured artists— Amanda Heng (Singapore), Roberto Feleo (Philippines), Anusapati (Indonesia), Do Hoang Tuong (Vietnam), Chris Chong Chan Fui (Malaysia), Yasmin Jaidin (Brunei), Min Thein Sung (Myanmar), Vuth Lyno (Cambodia), Jedsada Tangtrakulwong (Thailand), Savanhdary Vongpoothorn (Laos)
Exhibition: Ties of History: Art in Southeast Asia
Venue: Metropolitan Museum of Manila
University of the Philippines Vargas Museum
Yuchengco Museum
Dates: August 8 to October 6, 2018
Social Media: @tiesofhistory
Opening Reception: 5pm – 9pm
August 8 at the Metropolitan Museum of Manila
August 9 at the Yuchengco Museum
August 10 at the Vargas Museum
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
