The exhibition looks at contemporary art in Southeast Asia through small narratives told by eight artists and an artistic collaboration
10.03.2021 – 17.10.2021 (at the museum)
10.03.2021 – 31.12.2021 (virtual)
About the Exhibition
‘Stories Across Rising Lands’ is a survey exhibition of Southeast Asian contemporary art, co-curated by Museum MACAN’s curator Asep Topan and Jakarta-based Korean curator Jeong Ok Jeon. It features artists from across South East Asia, including the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia, who work in a range of media, including video, installation, photography, painting, and video performance. ‘Stories Across Rising Lands’ focuses on everyday actions and the small daily narratives that help to define social and cultural connections to place. As a survey of art from South East Asia, this exhibition reflects the diversity and substantial geographic spread of the region by emphasizing personal and fragmented connections to history and politics observed through the perspectives of artists.
The exhibition includes eight artists and artistic collaboration. Born in and around the 1980s, these artists are connected by their generational experience of media technology; the impact of shifting economic and political discussions within their home territories; and approaches to different aesthetic formats that reflect the subtle movement between local, regional, and global contexts. The artists selected for this exhibition are widely respected and actively contribute to the various conversations of contemporary art in their home situations, whilst regularly participating in regional and global conversations.
Stories Across Rising Lands | Exhibition Introduction by Curators Asep Topan & Jeong-ok Jeon
Exhibition Partners
The exhibition developed by Museum MACAN and supported by ASEAN, ASEAN Foundation, and ASEAN-Republic of Korea Cooperation Fund.
Virtual Program Partner
Exhibiting Artists
Cian Dayrit (the Philippines)
Ho Rui An (Singapore)
Kawita Vatanajyankur (Thailand)
Saleh Husein (Indonesia)
Lim Kok Yoong (Malaysia)
Souliya Phoumivong (Laos)
Maharani Mancanagara (Indonesia)
Nge Lay (Myanmar)
Tan Vatey dan Sinta Wibowo (Cambodia/Belgium)
Installation View
Installation view of the exhibition ‘Stories Across Rising Lands’, Museum MACAN, 2021.
Nge Lay (l./b. Myanmar, 1979) The Pass and the Present from Each Either Side of the Wall. Endless Story #1 (2013) & The Pass and the Present from Each Either Side of the Wall. Urban Story #1 (2013)
Color photograph. 60.96 x 76.2 cm. Collection of the artist
Installation view of the exhibition ‘Stories Across Rising Lands’, Museum MACAN, 2021.
Raden Saleh Sjarif Boestaman (b. Dutch East Indies, ca. 1811-1880) Javanese Mail Station (1879)
Oil on canvas. 51 x 72.5 cm. Collection of Museum MACAN
Video documentation of performance. Duration 30’. Collection of the artist
Saleh Husein (b. Saudi Arabia, 1982) Arabien Controlled Territory (2018/2021)
Archives, video, and text on the wall. Variable dimension. Duration 32’ 07’’. Collection of the artist
Cian Dayrit (b. The Philippines, 1989) Ain’t no other way out of this shitshow (2020)
Embroidery, objects, and digital print on fabric. 127 x 157.48 cm. Collection of the artist
Installation view of the exhibition ‘Stories Across Rising Lands’, Museum MACAN, 2021.
Souliya Phoumivong (b. Laos, 1983) Flow (2018)
Video 8’ 50’ Collection of the artist
Lim Kok Yoong (b. Malaysia, 1980) Licensed to Wait (2005/2021)
Installation and video projection. Variable dimension. Duration 03’ 36”. Collection of the artist
Installation view of the exhibition ‘Stories Across Rising Lands’, Museum MACAN, 2021.
Ho Rui An (b. Singapore, 1990) Screen Green (2015–2016)
Installation and video. 275 x 236 x 120 cm. Duration 52’ 30’’. Collection of the artist
Maharani Mancanagara (b. Indonesia, 1990) Tale of Wanatentrem (2018)
Storybooks in Indonesian, Korean Language, and English inside rotation boxes, vitrine, acrylic on wood, charcoal on wood. Variable dimension. Collection of the artist.
Tan Vatey & Sinta Wibowo (b. Cambodia, 1992) (b. Belgium, 1978) [re-enacting memories] with you (2021)
Wooden text, mirror, a hand-written letter, hand sanitizer, indoor plant, wooden shelf, wood stick, grabber, hanger, various fabrics (scarf, handkerchief, pillowcase & pillow, flag, bath towel, kitchen towel, face mask), TV, photo slideshow, black marker. 240 x 400 cm
Installation view of the exhibition ‘Stories Across Rising Lands’, Museum MACAN, 2021.
Cian Dayrit - "Ain’t no other way out of this shitshow" (2020) | Microsite