Greetings:
On Wednesday 21, 6 pm at Sa Sa Art Projects, The Death Ritual, an open studio current Pisaot artist-in-residence Soojin Chang, who has spent the past six weeks researching and experimenting on new works. “Soojin Chang’s artistic practice is led by an inquiry into political and individual trauma, particularly the way these are internalised and inherited in the body schema. Her performance and video works are driven by examinations into the agency and fertility of both humans and non-humans.”
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On Friday 23, 6 pm at Sa Sa Art Projects, From Heritage to Heresy: selected South Asians artists’ take on urbanization, a lecture by Hadrien Diez, as part of the public programme of their current exhibition Influence by Srun Rida. In English with Khmer translation.
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On Friday 23, 6 pm at Mirage Contemporary Art Space in Siem Reap, Her Sounds, a multimedia research project and exhibition by photographer Neak Sophal and ethnomusicologist Emily Howe, “celebrating the passion, persistence, and power of Cambodia’s women artists through image, sound, and story.” On the morning before the exhibition, at 10 am, a forum for young women in the arts will be held, a panel discussion hosted by New Cambodian Artists at the NCA Studio. On Saturday 24 at 10 am there will be a public lecture by Emily Howe.
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Also on Friday 23, from 7.30 pm, Cloud presents the launch of Ronin Rat and Ninja Cat, a comic mini-series by author/illustrator Joshua Chiang, with preview, meet-and-greet and live music.
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On Saturday 24, from 8 pm at Cloud, the opening of a photographic exhibition, The Dope Show, by Peterson Khim Rattanak as well as a screening of the short film Alan After Tomorrow by upcoming Khmer photographer/videographer Random – Shiro.
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Sunday 25 at Meta House, Creative Kids Club, an art workshop for children. $10 per family, 2 pm – 5 pm.
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Monday 26, from 7.30 pm, Drink and Draw at Cloud – $4 for two hours with a life model in multiple poses.
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Coming soon:
- On a stroll with street artist, photographer, stage decorator, writer and musician Bob Passion at the French Institute, August 31 – giant sculptures of paper and photo-montage plus live music
- Phnom Penh Players audition call, August 31 at KBach Gallery, for 3 Steps to Supernova, an original production, “a psychological drama that focuses on the protagonist’s ability to deal with a life altering event.”
- Resilience 2.0, a dance performance by Belle (Chumvan Sodhachivy) at the French Institute, September 4
For a more rock’n’roll view of Phnom Penh and the wider Cambodian music scene, please check out our sister publication lengpleng.com, the long running live music gig guide.
Note: we are now accepting donations for the on-going work of Kumnooh, which can be made either via payment to fabianhipp@kumnooh.com at Paypal, or alternatively in cash which can be arranged by emailing to the same address. Your small contributions will help continue our free and advertising free service into the great, wide future of contemporary arts in Cambodia.
Are we missing something? Let us know at fabianhipp@kumnooh.com.
See you about…
Fabian Hipp
Kumnooh
fabianhipp@kumnooh.com
In brief: new and returning…
Wednesday 21, 6 pm at Sa Sa Art Projects, The Death Ritual, an open studio current Pisaot artist-in-residence Soojin Chang.
More info
Friday 23, 6 pm at Sa Sa Art Projects, From Heritage to Heresy: selected South Asians artists’ take on urbanization, a lecture by Hadrien Diez.
More info
Friday 23, 6 pm at Mirage Contemporary Art Space in Siem Reap, Her Sounds, a multimedia research project and exhibition by photographer Neak Sophal and ethnomusicologist Emily Howe.
More info
Friday 23, 7.30 pm, Cloud presents the launch of Ronin Rat and Ninja Cat, a comic mini-series by author/illustrator Joshua Chiang.
More info
Saturday 24, 10 am at Mirage Contemporary Art Space in Siem Reap, a public lecture by Emily Howe as part of the exhibition Her Sounds.
More info
Saturday 24, 8 pm at Cloud, the opening of a photographic exhibition, The Dope Show, by Peterson Khim Rattanak plus screening of the short film Alan After Tomorrow by Random – Shiro.
More info
Sunday 25, 2 pm – 5 pm at Meta House, Creative Kids Club, an art workshop for children.
More info
Monday 26, from 7.30 pm, Drink and Draw at Cloud – $4 for two hours with a life model in multiple poses.
More info
Ongoing…. exhibitions, dance performances and others
Exhibitions:
At Meta House, I want to study, an exhibition of photographs by Samuel Hocking. “The project “I Want to Study”, began two years ago. It looks at six young Cambodians from lower socio-economic and disadvantaged backgrounds and the challenges they face in pursuit of an education. They give a face to the real human issues that confront Cambodian youth today and transform mere statistics to young lives that really matter.”
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At the House of Scott (St 228), Open Studio Cambodia presents Lavy Long’s second solo exhibition. “The group of curated watercolor landscapes provide insights into past iterations of his life such as his time as professional Khmer kickboxer and tuk tuk driver. ”
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At Cloud, No Need To Be Coy, an exhibition of paintings by Troy Campbell. “All of the work in this exhibition was created in my tiny ‘teacher’s apartment’ in Jeonju, South Korea, and was created entirely from Korean and SE Asian materials. Like so many journeys in my life, my journey as an English teacher began here in Phnom Penh, and my work is very much informed by the balancing of contrasts one has to do here in the Charming City.”
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Bophana Center presents Alive, an exhibition of photographs by Kim Hak. “A journey of discovery has taken the artist Kim Hak from his home town of Battambang to other parts of Cambodia and on to Australia and New Zealand. In 2018, with support from the Rei Foundation, Kim Hak spent time with 12 Cambodian families now in New Zealand, documenting their personal objects that hold the stories from their journey in surviving the Khmer Rouge and refugee camps and then resettling far from their homeland.”
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At TRIBE Cambodia in Siem Reap, The Space Between, the debut solo exhibition of linocuts by Morn Chear, presented by Open Studio Cambodia. “Drawn free-hand and then meticulously chiseled, Morn’s images playfully depict everyday scenes from his personal life: his wife washes the laundry by hand, a dog takes a nap in the alley, fish grill on a small barbecue, he rides his motorbike into the distance.”
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At Batia Sarem in Siem Reap, How do I look?, an exhibition of portraits by photographer Sovan Philong “Sovan Philong will show an intense series based on portraits in our gallery in Siem Reap. As in all his works, Philong uses light to renew the portrait genre and therefore the way one can really look at people and reveal their true self.”
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At Sa Sa Art Projects, Influence, a solo exhibition by Srun Rida, guest curated by Moeng Meta. “Srun Rida’s practice is both a processing of memories and a documenting of what happens in the past and now. In his new work presented in this exhibition, Influence, he continues his practice by observing the daily’s life in Cambodia. He became interested in objects and how people use them in everyday life.” Until 11 September.
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At Chinese House, Dreamscapes, watercolours by Long Lavy, his debut solo exhibition. “This group of meticulous watercolor landscapes speaks of past iterations of his life, experiences lived and now gone.”
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At Java Independence, the exhibition The dead eye and the deep blue sea, featuring artwork from a graphic memoir by Vannak Anan Prum. “The drawings are selected from the book, a graphic novel that tells his incredible story of surviving slavery in the regional fishing and agricultural industries. Vannak is a self-taught artist and his illustrative skills allowed him to gain favor with other people he was forced to live and work with by giving them tattoos. More importantly, thanks to his photographic memory he was able to draw his experiences in detail when he arrived home four years later. At first, he made the drawings to offer proof to his family in the only way he could. Later he decided to share his story publicly, leading to the publication of the graphic novel, further exposing the harsh realities of modern-day slavery.”
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A joint exhibition at the French Institute by Ouk Socheathy (ceramics) and Ou Vandy (sculpture). “Ouk Socheathy studied the art of ceramics at the Secondary School of Fine Arts and at the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh, where he specialized in the decorative arts. Most of his works are strongly inspired by the natural forms, the model of the nature of which he contemplates the organization, as well as by theravāda Buddhism and its belief in life cycles.” “Ou Vanndy’s inspiration comes from traditional or contemporary mythologies – as evidenced by the massive bull sculpture, made entirely of recycled materials and shown in the exhibition Artistic Wanderings, now installed in front of the French Institute of Cambodia..”
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KBach ArtSpace at Factory Phnom Penh, as part of their KBach Arts Competition 2019, are showing finalists in last year’s competition and a judges’ gallery as well as their regular collection.
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At the Kampot Art Gallery, Kampot: The Changing Landscape. “Neak Sophal and Kong Vollak have created a unique exhibition looking at Kampot and the impact of past, present and future.”
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Elegy: Reflections on Angkor by John McDermott. The award-winning American photographer maintains his strong presence on the Siem Reap art scene with his mesmerizing monochromatic fine art images of Angkor taken between 1995-2014. Now exhibiting in two McDermott Galleries located at FCC Angkor and Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor.
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Dance:
New Cambodian Artists in Siem Reap present weekly performances of contemporary dance every Saturday.
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Every Thursday and Friday, 6.30 pm at Counterspace Theatre, Java Creative Café Tuol Tom Pong, the dance company Sophiline Arts Ensemble presents performances of Cambodian dance. “Featuring a stellar cast dressed in fanciful costumes, The Lives of Giants is a contemporary meditation on bullying, cycles of violence, and the responsibilities of wielding power.” Tickets $18.
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Saturdays and Sundays, 6.30 pm at Counterspace Theatre, Java Creative Café Tuol Tom Pong, Prumsodun Ok and NATYARASA present performances of Vajramala – Spirit of Khmer Dance. Tickets $25.
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Dance Academy Cambodia has a wide range of dance classes through the week at Urban Tower, 5th Floor, #20 Street 51 (opposite Blue Dog, near The Place).
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The Traditional Dance Show, presented by Cambodian Living Arts, takes place at the National Museum stage. The hour-long performance showcases classical and folk dances from across Cambodia, including the famous Apsara. Every night Monday-Saturday (October-April) and every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday (May to September).
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Other:
The Kok Thlok arts organisation is presenting twice weekly shadow puppet and Khmer theatre performances at the National Library, St 61, every Friday and Sunday at 6.30 pm. Kok Thlok are offering a membership card, with an annual fee of $30, that provides unlimited access (including for family members or two friends) to the rolling programme planned over the next four years to present the 24 forms of traditional theatre.
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N o w h e r e Gallery presents frequent workshops such as Self Portrait Acrylic on Canvas, Bookbinding for beginners and Brush lettering for beginners. Bookings always essential, spaces limited. Mostly Saturdays and Sundays although occasionally midweek.
The theatrical group the Francophone Troupe of Phnom Penh is holding a theatre workshops at 6.30 pm every Wednesday at Restaurant 63 Bassac, on St 308. Sessions are in French but perfect French is not required. $10/session (2 hours).
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Every Saturday at 5 pm, Bophana Center presents Cine Saturday. Programme changes every week, across a wide range of cinema experiences.
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Most Sundays (and occasionally Saturdays) Khmer Architecture Tours presents a range of the architectural wonders of Phnom Penh. 8.30 am start, reservations essential.
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Performing arts courses at Brighton International School (#79 street 310) for ages 4 – 6 and 7 – 11 – singing, dancing, acting, every Saturday.
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Fortnightly on Wednesdays, at Cloud, a poetry writing workshop hosted by Jessica of Feminist Voices Phnom Penh for anyone looking to expand their writing, find their voice and build confidence. Please bring something to write with.
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New art programmes for children from three years old and up is now underway at Ocarina School led by a certified art teacher, Océane. “Ocarina is the first and only French-speaking activities center offering French standard after-school music and art curriculums for children from 6 months to 17 years old.”
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A weekly gathering on Thursday night at Number 26 Art Shop Gallery on St 118, just off the riverside, 7 pm – 10 pm, with monthly changes of exhibitions, a place to exchange ideas.
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Kumnooh 