27/5/2004
Jun Nguyen-Hatsushiba
Roppongi Forum, Tokyo
Nguyen-Hatsushiba's work shows a keen consciousness of such elements as the undeniable role of the United States in the Vietnam's historical and social background and present economic well-being.
MAM Project 002 showcases the work of Jun Nguyen-Hatsushiba.
Nguyen-Hatsushiba was born in Tokyo in 1968 to Vietnamese and Japanese parents and is currently based in Ho Chi Minh City. With an international background, and having studied in the United States, it is not surprising that his work is concerned with issues such as 1990s globalization and internationalization. He interlaces these concerns with his own search for identity.
Nguyen-Hatsushiba’s early work featured a series of installations using the cyclo (three-wheeled taxi) which is used as a form of public transport in Vietnam, as well as mosquito nets, newspapers, rice and instant noodles.
Nguyen-Hatsushiba’s work shows a keen consciousness of such elements as the undeniable role of the United States in the Vietnam’s historical and social background and present economic well-being. Nguyen-Hatsushiba won international acclaim for his 2001 video, “Memorial Project Nha Trang, Vietnam - Towards the Complex - For the Courageous, the Curious, and the Cowards.†Filmed in the South China Sea, the complex social background of the cyclo drivers as they push their vehicles underwater contrasts with the beauty of the ocean and the colors of the light. Nguyen-Hatsushiba has continued to produce new videos such as “Memorial Project Minamata: Neither Either nor Neither - A Love Story†(2002) and “Happy New Year - memorial Project Vietnam II†(2003) and is rapidly establishing an international reputation.
MAM Project 002 will feature Nguyen-Hatsushiba’s new work, “Flag Project (Memorial Project Okinawa)†(2003) filmed in the sea off Okinawa. The theme of this work is the star that features in both the American and the Vietnamese national flags. As a remixed James Bond movie soundtrack is played underwater, portraits of movie stars who have featured in Hollywood movies about the Vietnam War are painted in yellow onto the red fabric of the Vietnamese national flag. Here the American “stars†start to signify movie “stars†and the “stars†of the flag begin to transmute into the star of the Vietnamese flag.
Image:
JUN NGUYEN - HATSUSHIBA
HO! HO! HO! MERRY CHRISTMAS - BATTLE OF EASEL POINT - MEMORIAL PROJECT OKINAWA
Organizer: Mori Art Museum
Hours: 10:00-22:00 Mon, Wed, Thu; 10:00-24:00 Fri - Sun, days preceding national holidays; 10:00-17:00 Tue. (Admission until 30 minutes before closing time) * The Museum is open every day during the exhibition period.
ARTIST TALK SERIES MYWORK V
Jun Nguyen-Hatsushiba
*Consecutive interpretation available, advance booking necessary
Date: 11:00am-12:30, 29 May (Saturday)
Roppongi Forum Steproom 1, Academy Hills, Tokyo