Building a platform for East and Southeast Asian Diaspora
By KV Duong

'My Own Words' is a monthly series which features personal essays by practitioners in the Southeast Asian art community. They deliberate on their locality's present circumstances, articulating observations and challenges in their respective roles.

KV Duong’s family portrait, taken in Ho Chi Minh City, 1986. Image courtesy of the artist.

What does home mean for the Vietnamese diasporic community in the United Kingdom (UK)? This is the question our group of artists in 'No Place Like Home' tries to examine. For a country like Vietnam that underwent prolonged warfare in the 20th century, the concept of home is not only a physical dwelling but also a mental construct, especially for the diasporic communities who have now settled in our (sometimes) chosen countries outside of Vietnam.

When my family boarded that plane in March of 1987, departing from Ho Chi Minh City to Canada, we left –physically, if not mentally–a contested history behind us to pursue new opportunities and the dreams of an immigrant family. Without exception, this would not have been possible without the risks and sacrifices that our relatives took as boat people after the fall of Saigon.

My name, KV (Kiên Vinh 建榮) Đường (唐), gives an indication of my background. KV is the abbreviated anglicised form that I have adopted for the past 20 years. My family are ethnic Chinese born in Vietnam. As a child, I spoke Vietnamese and Cantonese, but over time, I have lost much of my comprehension of the former and my written skills in the latter. This cross-cultural hybridity becomes even more complex after settling in Canada and now the UK.

Much of my identity, thought processes, and life perspectives are deeply intertwined with my family's history and our connection to Vietnam. Yet, it has taken a lot of self-reflection for me to call myself a Vietnamese artist and to understand that my diasporic experience as a multinational person holds equal relevance and validity to the life experiences of those who have spent their entire lives in Vietnam.

‘No Place Like Home’, 2023, installation view. Photo by Joseph Beeching. Image courtesy of the artist.

KV Duong & Hoa Dung Clerget, ‘The Cityscape’, 2023, installation view as part of ‘No Place Like Home’. Photo by Joseph Beeching. Image courtesy of the artist.

‘No Place Like Home’ brings together eight artists from the Vietnamese diaspora to explore the concept of home. At the museum entrance, ‘The Cityscape’ (2023) is installed using Vietnamese plastic stools to highlight the effect of the urban structure on the emotions of migrant populations. The main room showcases object-based artworks displayed on curved, low-rise tables. Our aim is to disrupt the traditional ways of viewing art in Western institutions by inviting viewers to sit on straw mats, physically interact with some of the artworks, and potentially engage in conversations with one another. The soft, curved shape of the tables serves as a departure from the traditional hard-edged administrative tables, facilitating a more fluid and dynamic exchange of ideas.

The exhibited artists have a diverse range of Vietnamese diasporic backgrounds, including those from the second generation, those who moved abroad as children, those with refugee parents, and others who grew up in Vietnam. Additionally, the group's cultural backgrounds include Chinese, French, Canadian, Algerian, and British. Hoa Dung Clerget and Carô Gervay were born in France, with Carô born to mixed-race parents. Minh Lan Tran was born in Hong Kong and holds French nationality. Duong Thuy Nguyen, AP Nguyen, and Koa Pham were born in Vietnam and later came to the UK for their studies. Cường Minh Bá Phạm was born in London to parents who were boat refugees to Hong Kong.

Hoa Dung Clerget & Koa Pham, ‘The Gift’, 2023. Photo by Joseph Beeching. Image courtesy of the artist.

Duong Thuy Nguyen, ‘Nước Nhà/ Pickled houses’, 2023. Image courtesy of the artist.

KV Duong, ‘Birthday Cake to My Younger Self’, 2023. Image courtesy of the artist.

Within the context of this dinner party to which we have invited the audience, we engage in a collective dialogue by asking one another, "Which objects evoke a sense of home for us?"

In the East and Southeast Asian cultures, it is common to bring food as a gift when invited to someone's home. The king of fruits, the durian, is the subject of ‘The Gift’ (2023), created by Clerget and Koa Pham to reflect the nature of their multiple exchanges, serving as a gift of friendship and shared knowledge between them. In fact, the artworks by most of the artists in this exhibition reflect ongoing discussions, which can be perceived as gifts of meaningful conversations.

“The artworks by most of the artists in this exhibition reflect ongoing discussions, which can be perceived as gifts of meaningful conversations.”

In working-class households, jars of pickled fruits and vegetables are common sightings. Some of these are used to make Vietnam’s iconic pickled Sấu drink. Duong Thuy Nguyen's artwork, 'Nước Nhà/ Pickled Houses' (2023), draws inspiration from the drink. However, her interpretation involves 3D-printed mini stacked houses from Hanoi, which are submerged in a cloudy burnt umber liquid. Her artwork leaves the viewer with questions about cultural values and climate change.

My own creation ‘Birthday Cake to My Younger Self’ (2023) recalls memories of my first birthday cake when I turned seven in Canada. A seemingly warm occasion, this replica, crafted using clay, concrete, wire, and acrylic, intentionally subverts expectations. It is distinctly inedible and deliberately infused with a queer aesthetic.

‘No Place Like Home’, 2023, opening launch. Image courtesy of the artist.

KV Duong, exhibition view of various works, 2023. Photo by Joseph Beeching. Image courtesy of the artist.

As co-curators and lead artists of this exhibition, Hoa Dung Clerget and I embarked on our collaboration two years ago with a primary goal in mind: to establish a platform for exchange, not only for the Vietnamese community but also for the broader East and Southeast Asian (ESEA) diaspora.

Within the context of the UK narrative, this exhibition offers a rare opportunity for Vietnamese artists, including ESEA, to showcase our perspective in a Western institution for three months. We appreciate this privilege and actively engage with diverse voices through meaningful exchanges within our team and the wider community.

As artists of the global majority in the UK, we encounter obstacles in gaining recognition for our artistic voices. We genuinely hope that this exhibition is our catalyst for amplifying our collective voice, providing a contrasting perspective to the dominant narrative, and contributing to a more inclusive artistic landscape. One visitor noted:

“Thank you for capturing and sharing this perspective of the Vietnamese diaspora so beautifully. It is truly remarkable and engaging for my kids. This exhibition gave me lots of thoughts about family, memory, and storytelling.”

As artists, we spend endless hours and sleepless nights creating our craft, driven by the purpose of making a poignant impact on the viewer. Hearing such feedback, and many more similar ones, makes all our efforts worthwhile.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of A&M.

This exhibition is supported by Museum of The Home (Lien Viet fund), Jerwood Arts New Work Fund, and the Arts Council of England National Lottery Project Grant.

This essay was first published in CHECK-IN 2023, A&M’s third annual publication. Click here to read the digital copy in full, or to purchase a copy of the limited print edition.

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