Hartford
I’m Not Seeing The Trauma
by | Jan 17, 2024 4:35 pm
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Posted to: Visual Art
celebration for a daughter, 2024
Bamboo Melamine
Theaterworks
Hartford
Jan. 17, 2024
As I was searching for some cool art events to check out this week, I came across a listing for Bamboo Melamine by Khmer artist Joe Bun Keo at Theaterworks in Hartford. Down towards the bottom, the event announcement gave a brief statement regarding the meaning of the name of the exhibit and the artist’s intent.
Oh no, I thought. I’d broken my main rule: I’d learned something about the exhibit before I went in to see it.
Instead of lamenting that fact, I decided to turn it into an opportunity. I would learn everything I could about the artist and their context.
I went to their website and read their statement and the About page. That’s where I found the word “materiality”:
“Keo’s work embodies the belief that it is not necessary to fabricate or create new commodities, but rather utilize what already exists in a society that is in excess of materials. The materiality loaded with emotion is a reminder that the things we leave behind will speak volumes of our past, present, and future. There are stories behind anything and everything.”
disorient boy meets world, 2024
That word also showed up in the artist’s statement at the exhibit. I’d never heard that word before, so I looked it up and found no less than seven different definitions. It could mean, quite literally, the “quality or state of being material.” Or it could refer to a technique of combining various materials in architecture. Or it could refer to the importance of an amount, transaction or discrepancy in accounting practice. Or perhaps it’s the social sciences definition, where the physical properties of a cultural artifact have consequences for how it’s used. (All of these other definitions can be found here.)
It soon became clear that trying to understand art through writing was just as daunting as trying to understand it by looking at it. In some of my previous arts reviews I’d said that I moved past trying to decipher meaning and was focused more on the feeling that artwork evoked in me. But in this case, the artist was telling me explicitly that they had something to say. It was my job to work and try to understand them.
stay away from my friends, 2024
So I went to work, but try as I might, I couldn’t really fathom the connection between the objects and the artist who had chosen them. Keo’s statement defines themselves as an artist, the child of Khmer Rouge genocide survivors, the parent of autism spectrum children, the spouse of a chronically ill person, and someone seeking to “unpack intergenerational trauma through the scope of neomaterialism.”
third party, 2024
With the exception of the “Caution- Do Not Enter” tape, I had a hard time connecting any of the artwork to those heavy themes. The exhibit seemed far more joyful to me.
Celebration for a Daughter seemed just like that — a fun piece recreating the impromptu play sessions that often occur with children.
Disorient Boy Meets World made me think again of children, looking at cool odds and ends (because a clear egg carton is honestly pretty cool).
Third Party reminded me of the upcoming presidential race, and while that’s often a source of foreboding, I took a hopeful message from the wire remains of a campaign sign. Those Khmer Rogue survivors were now participating in democracy, so much so that they destroyed the sign through use.
And for a person who has walked the streets of Hartford for years and found many discarded bike seats in the streets, you’re as subtle as a brick in the small of your back resurfaced the same funny question I had every time I saw one: is the person who’s still riding that seatless bike comfortable?
I’ve often encouraged my brother to do more creative drawing. He has always answered with, “No, because I want people to understand exactly what I’m trying to say.” To which I responded, “You might as well give up on that, because even if you tell your audience exactly what you mean, they won’t believe you.” This may be a case of that. Keo clearly meant something very different from what I took away from today’s exhibit. Whether that’s good or bad probably depends on whether it’s me or him you’re asking.
NEXT
Bamboo Melamine runs at Theaterworks through March 3.
Jamil returns to Carmine’s to finally try the food.
So I don't want to be mean to the writer, who seems like a perfectly wonderful individual and has a wide range of interests and talents. But sending someone who is not informed about the arts - who does not know the word "materiality," for instance, to review the work of a serious and legitimate artist is an insult to that artist, in this case, Mr. Keo. I went back through and read some of Mr. Ragland's work - lots of thoughtful and well-written reviews, but art is clearly not his forte.
An artist who is putting a lot of thought, labor, money, and conceptual ideas into their work deserves a reviewer who knows what they are talking about. I appreciate that one can find value in the thoughts of "the average person-about-town" - but serious art requires a considered perspective. Anything less is insulting to the artist and to the arts in general. I admire the "Review Crew" initiative of the NH Indy to bring get to all kinds of events and shows that might not otherwise be covered - but there are surely writers who would be interested in covering specialized areas - be in the arts, theater, music, etc - that would do more justice to the subject matter.
I haven't had the privilege of seeing this exhibition in person, but from the description and photos, I see a profound mixture of the described intergenerational trauma as well as humor, pathos, and critiques of modes of power and burdens of representation. Art can be judged as "successful" or not, that's fair - and Mr. Ragland does not see the ideas broadcast by the artist, okay. But his review doesn't really address why he can't see this - no substantial critique is offered - and instead breezily offers Mr. Ragland's perspective, thus denying the viability of Mr. Keo's work. It's insensitive to the artist and an affront to the arts in general. Whether you like the work or not, whether it does what it claims to be doing, it deserves a thoughtful and considered response, which I do not believe has happened here.