In the last decade, we have seen the emergence of contemporary photography in Cambodia. This has prompted some curators and writers to speak of the photographic arts in Cambodia as something new. In truth, the years of displacement in the 70s and 80s ruptured the development, and our knowledge, of Cambodian photography. Today, as we begin to write the history of Cambodian photography, it is important to take into account its vernacular practices since the late colonial era. This is because in Southeast Asia, we tend to contextualize photography and its relationship with art in a very narrow way. In this presentation, I use Cambodian photography as a test case to suggest that curators and art historians in Southeast Asia should rethink the connection between art and photography.
'Contemporary Art in Cambodia: A Historical Inquiry' was a one-day academic symposium with renowned scholars, curators, and artists. Some have argued that Cambodia has emerged from a post-conflict society into an era of social, economic, and political transformation. This symposium focused on a dimension of its cultural transformation as it has been manifested in a burgeoning contemporary arts scene within the last decade. Through inquiries into broader artistic, cultural, and aesthetic practices, various scholars and arts practitioners spoke to historical trajectories of contemporary art practice in Cambodia and its positioning in narratives of art history. By building a critical dialogue that interrogates the way the field is being shaped, the symposium aims to strengthen the foundation for more thorough investigations into Cambodia’s recent art historical developments.
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