October Round-Up

Vin Gallery, La Lanta Fine Art, NTU ADM Gallery, etc. 
By Andari Suherlan

Richard Streitmatter-Tran, exhibition installation view. Image courtesy of Vin Gallery.

Prophilia
This exhibition features a collection of portrait paintings by Richard Streitmatter-Tran. Entitled ‘Prophilia’, which combines the word profile and -philia, or the love of something, the show reveals the history of self and identity found within the social world of profile images. Communicating the long tradition of portraiture, the artist shares society’s adoration of the self by painting on everyday materials such as metal plates and woks. In this way, the series connects the immateriality of screen-based lives with the material objects of everyday life.

Vin Gallery, 10 September to 10 October 2020.

Joshua Kane Gomes, ‘Untitled (Swing)’, 2017, steel, rubber and LED lights, 270 x 45cm. Image courtesy of NTU ADM Gallery.

The Foot Beneath the Flower
Curated by Louis Ho, ‘The Foot Beneath the Flower’ features 18 artists from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam. These artists include ren zi, Joshua Kane Gomes, Arahmaiani, Kawita Vatanajyankur, Richie Htet and Viet Le. Exploring the “camp” and “kitsch” discourse found in Southeast Asian contemporary art, each artist critically approaches the issues surrounding the social, political and historical issues of the region. These complexities cover socio-cultural narratives, the recontextualisation of everyday materials and discussions surrounding gender and identity. While each artist expresses such ideas differently, the show in its entirety speaks for marginal and occluded voices such as refugees, queer communities, and victims of racial discrimination. 

NTU ADM Gallery, 28 September to 31 October 2020.

Ho Rui An, ‘Asia the Unmiraculous’, 2018, lecture and video installation with digital prints on paper mounted on LED-illuminated acrylic, books and magnetically levitated hand model. Image courtesy of A+ Works of Art.

Look East Gone West
In his first solo exhibition in Southeast Asia, artist and writer Ho Rui An investigates the neoliberal policies that caused the economic boom of the late twentieth century against contemporary shifts in global capitalism. Referring to Mahathir’s “Buy British Last” and “Look East” policies which sustained economic growth in countries such as Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan, this series of video works are critical re-examinations of racial divisions in the history in Eastern countries such as the so-called East Asian miracle. The show differentiates the complexities of these socio-political issues on one side of the past and the other in the future through a narrative of progress.

A+ Works of Art, 26 September to 24 October 2020.

Jirapat Tatsanasomboon, ‘Consciousness! (After Keith Haring)’, 2020, acrylic on canvas, 112 x86cm. Image courtesy of La Lanta Fine Art.

Compassion in Adversity
Featuring eight paintings by Thai artist Jirapat Tatsanasomboon, ‘Compassion in Adversity’ addresses contradictions in cultural beliefs and traditions of both the East and the West through integrating traditional local imagery with iconic subjects from popular culture. These references to the signature artworks of Magritte, Keith Haring, Yayoi Kusama and Takashi Murakami against figures of local Thai culture reveal the universal adversities surrounding the socio-political issues found within the nationalist government in Thailand.

La Lanta Fine Art, 19 September to 28 October 2020.

Exhibition installation view. Photo courtesy of Kohesi Initiatives.

Confluence

Held in Kohesi Initiative’s collaborative space in Yogyakarta, ‘Confluence’ converges the artistic styles of two generations of artists from Indonesia and the Philippines. Artists who are considered seniors in their art practice and young, emerging artists come together to bring a conversation between traditional and modern art styles. Together, artists Moelyono, Alfredo, Ivan Sagita, Abenk Alter, Addy Debil, Anton Afganial, Bernardi Desanda, Iskandar Fauzy, Marvin Quizon and Tommy Wondra display the various cultural backgrounds, art practices and experiences that have shaped each artist’s distinct identity and art practice. 

Kohesi Initiatives, 11 September to 11 October 2020.

Eko Nugroho, ‘Unity in Hiding #1’, 2018, acrylic on canvas, 200 x 200cm. Image courtesy of the artist and Arario Gallery.

Eko Nugroho: Lost in Parody
Arario Gallery presents ‘Lost in Parody’, Indonesian artist Eko Nugroho’s second solo exhibition in Seoul, South Korea since 2013. Observing the world today as a parody, the show questions universal values of peace, democracy, borders, togetherness and the future. The artist reimagines Indonesian techniques of batik and embroidery to discuss the irony of social segregation as part of his large ongoing work known as “embroidered paintings”. In an attempt to understand what it means to be “united to divide”, the artist also draws on the way democracy is still glorified in a society where individuals create boundaries based on race and ideologies. Read Clara Peh's review of the digital exhibition here.

Arario Gallery, 1 September to 14 November 2020.

Le Hoang Bich Phuong, ‘The Milky Way’, 2015, 300 ceramic figures, edition of 3. Image courtesy of the artist and Richard Koh Fine Art.

Unlearning
Richard Koh Fine Art presents ‘Unlearning’, a show which displays the works of seven Vietnamese artists Bao Vuong, Cam Xanh, Cao Hoang Long, Le Hoang Bich Phuong, Nghia Dang, Quynh Lam and Tuyen Nguyen. Curated by David Willis, this exhibition aims to redefine Vietnamese contemporary art outside the typical images of traditional and cultural tropes. Engaging with the growth of the global art world whilst being informed by local cultures and traditions, the show conveys universal themes such as the human condition in relationships, the influence of Western art in Eastern culture today and new media that are all reminiscent of artists’ past experiences.

Richard Koh Fine Art, 2 to 24 October 2020.

Mga Misteryo Sa Tuwa
The erotic takes the centre stage in 'Mga Misteryo Sa Tuwa', or ‘Mysteries of Joy’. Curated by Norman Crisologo, the show features a collection of works by 10 Philippine female artists, who honour the female body and sexuality from their unique perspectives. Cheeky and fiercer works make bold statements, such as Yeo Kaa's 'Ya Dick Killed Ya' knife series – brightly-coloured penises form the handle of the knives, connoting a sense of violence and skewed power relations between the two normative genders. Then there are the more subtle pieces, such as Bree Jonson's 'Kainan sa Highway' which sees an assortment of animals in the frenzied act of consuming one another, suggesting the animalistic passion and fervour human beings are just as susceptible to. Each artist, in her own way, attempts to demystify and shed light on this subject from a feminine point of view. Read Bree's Fresh Faces interview here.

Artinformal, 29 September to 31 October 2020.