F.O.B.II: Art Speaks
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F.O.B.II: Art Speaks
[Nghệ Thuật Lên Tiếng]
January 9-15, 2009
F.O.B II: Foyer of VAALA Center
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY
ROOM
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Nguyen Viet Hung
Freedom 2: 7 days through the sea
Photo by Jenni Trang Le
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Nguyen Viet Hung
Freedom 2: 7 days through the sea
I crossed the sea to arrive at the Philippines in 1981, and immigrated to the U.S. in 1982.
The seven-nights journey was on a small fishing boat, taking many risks with the storms. The
ocean could either bury me or carry me to the promised land, and it ended up giving us mercy
after the challenges.
The seven-nights journey across the sea is so short in comparison to the amount of time I’ve
spent in my second homeland, from 1982 to 2008. In this time, I have completed a new
project about that journey then.
Describing that journey on the ocean from Vietnam to the Phillippines, 7 boats are 7 days on
the water, face-to-face with danger on the endless ocean; life-death, hope-despair…
Freedom is not a given.
I do not create these types of paintings often, but I’m not sure why I’ve returned to my
memories, feeling like I have to paint, so that the worries about life’s uncertainties can
settle…
I choose this work to participate in the exhibition Art Speaks as a way to speak about the
origins of the Vietnamese diaspora of Little Saigon. Although the Vietnamese immigrants
have arrived here by different journeys, we all have freedom in common.
But freedom is not a destination nor is it tangible. It is an ongoing journey. Freedom needs to
be maintained and protected. And the best method: freedom of an individual cannot infringe
on other individuals’ freedom.
Freedom is a way of choosing. Freedom is so rare, do not abuse it and do not lose it.
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Ann Phong, Mending
My art reflects the feelings
and thoughts of people
who have experienced
hardships in their lives.
Many have suffered
through difficult living
conditions while being
uprooted from their
homeland, only to settle
down in a new territory
which resembles nothing
about their culture but
promises freedom. Even
more have felt
disconnected with the
younger generations who
have seemed to lose their
heritage years after. We
Photo by Kieu Linh Valverde
Vietnamese in particular
develop complex and
restrained emotions. To
survive in these desperate
situations, we reinforce
ourselves with optimistic
attitudes.
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Ann Phong, An Advice
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Nguyen Trong Khoi
Image courtesy of artist
Seed of Life
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Nguyen Trong Khoi
Seed of Life
When I was in Viet Nam, I heard and saw the suffering of many people or those
who had to endure many tragedies in their journey to freedom. I witnessed how
these tragedies happened every single day…I use painting, then, in order to
express first and foremost the pent-up emotions that are harbored inside of
me. I painted Seed of Life non-stop for about 3 hours. The painting was quickly
finished as to mark my own emotions. At the same period of time, I also
produced another work called Nostalgia (which includes 3 paintings put together
and are oil on canvas, measuring 48”x90”).
Seed of Life was exhibited in my solo art show at City Hall in Boston, MA, in
1993 as a sharing of pain and loss of my people and community. The biggest
tragedy of my people has been the waste of human life. What I would like to
say about Seed of Life is that preserving life is the most important and
necessary act. The work of protecting the life of your country is an essential
duty; as a result, every person must become immensely valued. Being able to
live is a right that I believe needs to be sustained and passed down through the
generations.
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Dao Hai Trieu
Nautical Dreams and The Waves
Images courtesy of artist
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Dao Hai Trieu
Nautical Dreams and The Waves
I often reminisce of the sea—the place of my rebirth—
whose temperamental waves shift without warning
between the peaceful serenity of a calm day and the
unforgiving rage of the violent storm; its volatile mood
marked by the gloom of the gray morning suddenly
made vibrant red, only deepen into purple sullenness.
It is an incomprehensible vastness, a world
immeasurable. I offer the sea, my temperamental
savior, the most fragrant flower—a gesture of thanks
for all the freedoms it has nourished on this endless
journey.
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Binh Danh, Pulau Bidong Series
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Binh Danh
Pulau Bidong Series
Over the summer of 2002, my mother and I visited a
little abandoned island off the coast of Malaysia called
Pulau Bidong, the site of a Vietnamese refugee camp
where we had lived. We explored the island by taking
photographs and gathering ephemeral documents
scattered throughout the deserted buildings. These
photographs resulting from our visit allowed us to
remember the past and focus on the present.
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Long Nguyen
Tales of Yellow Skin #18 and #28
Photo by Lan Duong
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Le T. Que-Huong
To Cali with Love I and II
Images courtesy of artist
RECONSTRUCTING MEMORY:
Le T. Que-Huong
To Cali with Love I and II
I live and celebrate life now in California. But so often, my
heart and soul still tremble when I receive a familiar “AIR
MAIL” envelope with marks and handwriting so distinctively
from Viet Nam, the faraway land that holds so much
memory for me; the land that still nurtures many seeds for
my art. My paintings are like “maps” to reveal and convey
the emotional connection of my past…and present.
YOUTH CULTURE AND
IDENTITY POLITICS ROOM
YOUTH CULTURE AND IDENTITY POLITICS: Demon
Slayer Family
Give Love, Get Loved
This work navigates
attention to the
dualistic dialogue
steaming between
diferent generations
of Vietnamese living
in America today.
The distinct
intertwined cultural
and social aspects
merge with
traditional views and
nationalistic
identities of
program.
Photos by Jenni Trang Le
YOUTH CULTURE AND IDENTITY POLITICS: Demon
Slayer Family
Give Love, Get Loved
Photos by Jenni Trang Le
YOUTH CULTURE AND IDENTITY POLITICS: Dan Duy
Nguyen, Cosmic Emnesty
The first in a series dedicated to the
humanistic experience within an
infinite universe. This piece
exemplifies specifically the feminine
energies of our reality, focused and
manifested as a human female.
The title "Cosmic Emnesty" can be
broken down and further examined
to reiterate the message of the
piece. "Cosmic" alludes to the
cosmos, both micro and macro
realities as we know it. The "Em" in
"Emnesty" specifically relates to the
Vietnamese system of masculine /
feminine identification, a cultural
product of tradition. The artist has
created a slang term for "your
majesty,” shortened and combined
with "Em" to emerge as "Emnesty.”
The image and title highlight a trinity
that is connected by the whole;
three points of the same triangle:
Queen, Em, and Cosmic Human.
