Key Terms: space, monumentality, continuation, resistance, systematic oppression, justification, deceit, chaos, process

MEETING MINUTES

This meeting of the After Hope working group grappled with how to reconcile chaos with continuation. In a long and historically-precedented cycle of upheaval and restoration, modern life has supplied a multitude of both obstacles and distractions to detract from the destruction fueling its drive. Artists in this working group all approached the task of extracting hope from this constant process of upheaval through a gamut of therapeutic methods, from solemn remembrance to comic relief.

The conversation was kicked off by Zeina Barakeh, who discussed her work “Scenarios of Breaking Down a Wall” by contextualizing her experience as a Palestinian living in Beirut. In working with an Israeli artist on the metaphorical subject of walls and how to surmount them, Zeina’s intent was to ensure the audience’s focus remains squarely on collaborative resistance rather than resentment, and her use of comedic tone guaranteed this. The central de-colonial character  bears a literal workhorse demeanor throughout, and joins forces with an entourage of equally-headed individuals who jointly secure a chance to bring a variety of oppressive walls tumbling down.

Sutthirat Supaparinya (a.k.a. Som) also focused on frameworks for resistance in Thailand, exploring the ways a violent military corruption has threatened the pretext of democratic representation in her home country. By galvanizing the iconography of a decades-popular landmark (marking the start of the nation’s highway system in Bangkok), Som pointed out the endurance of liberation struggles, and in discussion was keen to note the importance of the youth in furthering this cause. “Roundabout at KM 0” took place around the towering Democracy Monument, which was once commissioned as a form of self-justification in the wake of a 1930s coup-d’état, but has become a rallying waypoint for numerous mass student demonstrations in the decades since – a buried, contested history which Sutthirat remains committed to not rewriting today.

Nguyen Tan Hoang also tracked an oft-neglected history with his work “I Remember Dancing,” which highlighted the heart-wrenching testimonies from an ensemble cast of ‘trans and queer gaysians,’ remarking on the ways in which a prematurely-forgotten epidemic has forced them to reconcile with marginalization. Nguyen’s work harkened back to the critical methodology proposed by José Esteban-Muñoz, and his discussion underscored how integral disappointment can be to radical hope – especially while challenging the mainstream, incomplete cultural narrative around HIV. Despite its ongoing severity, the subject rarely garners as much attention or coverage as it did when the epidemic was at its beginning, and has therefore transferred from the collective conscious to unconscious, which ultimately relegates queer issues to invisibility once more.

J Triangular continued the discussion the collaborative video project “Lunch Poems.” Featuring a translation by Chen An-An, the series of VHS tapes chronicled daily escapades in New York City combined with narration by artist Miss Expanding Universe (a.k.a. Ashley Yang-Thompson). Their collaboration was designed to merge the performative practice of poetry with the “mundane act” of intimate connection as well as elevate the “everyday heroic actions of ordinary people” to an art.

Notes taken by Katie Bruhn
Revised by Moises De La Cruz

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