Naima Morelli

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Tag "phnom penh"

DanaLanglois
It was February last year that I embarked on a month-long journey to Cambodia for a reportage on the local contemporary art scene. During that time on the field I realized 20 interviews in Siem Reap, Battambang and Phnom Penh, meet incredible people, and had the privilege to visit artist’s studio and local art spaces.

Among these, Java Arts in Phnom Penh is certainly one of the most important, and the name of its founder and director Dana Langlois was one of the first on my list of the must-interview. A powerhouse in her own right, Dana gave me her perspectives on the Cambodian art scene. CoBo has just published our conversation.

It took one year to publish most of the material, article by article, mostly on CoBo, but also on Culture360 and Art Republik. I love this methodology of work I have established, from gathering the seeds (aka researching on the field), sowing and watering (working on the material and reflecting on it throughout the year) and harvesting (seeing the pieces published on magazines.) It’s a thing of beauty, and I try to be present to each phase of this process. Hopefully, throughout this year I manage to share what I have learned about Cambodian contemporary art, and highlight what’s interesting with it.

And now to Dana’s interview on CoBo, hope you will enjoy it:

Here is the link to the interview

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VuthLyno

The developments for visual art in Cambodia are not well-known yet. At CoBo social a group of writers and I are trying to fill some gaps with articles and interviews to the protagonists of the scene.

Vuth Lyno is certainly one of the most prominent figure in the art system of the Kingdom. The director, curator, artist and art activist is a pivotal figure in the still small but growing Cambodian contemporary art scene – I have huge respect for him and was a real honour to speak with him during my trip in Phnom Penh.

Here is the link to the interview

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KhiangHei
Sometimes when I start an art exploration in a new country of Southeast Asia, I can be lucky enough to meet a figure which becomes a guide of sorts. This person usually helps me entangle the key mechanisms of the art system, and understand the psychology of local artists.

In Cambodia, this figure was Khiang Hei. In this interview published on CoBo, we tackled the most pressing issues together in the emerging Cambodian art scene. With an understanding of the local hardships, as well as a very pragmatic spirit, Khiang suggested possible solutions, some of which he has implemented himself over the years.

The piece is part of my reportage on Cambodian contemporary art.

Here is the link to the interview

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SophalNeak
In the third installment of CoBo’s series on Cambodian photographers, I spoke with artist Sophal Neak, a rising talent in the Cambodian scene. This piece is part of my reportage on Cambodian contemporary art.

Here is the link to the interview

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SopheapPich

At the beginning of the year I visited Cambodian artist Sopheap Pich in his Phnom Penh studio. He explained his view of contemporary art in Cambodia and what young artists need in order to grow the local art scene. The article is part of my reportage on Cambodian contemporary art.

Here is the link to the interview

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KanithaTith
Another interview with a super-interesting Khmer artist has been published on CoBo, as part of my reportage on contemporary art in Cambodia. For this piece I spoke with Kanitha Tith, one of the young, emerging voices in the artistic landscape, who is gaining more and more recognition internationally.

In the article she tell about her creative process and what it means to be a multi-passionate creative in Phnom Penh.

Here is the link to the interview

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MetaMoeng
Here we go with a new article from my Cambodia reportage; it’s so great to see all the fruits from my research coming out little by little and share all this beauty – this time through the web platform Culture360 which is all about creating trans-continental connections.

And I’m super grateful to have met art manager and Kon Len Khnhom founder Met Moeng during my trip to Phnom Penh.  Coming from an art system where people don’t have to do things in the arts out of necessity, but more for individualistic reasons, it’s very heartening to see someone who daily embodies the word “service”. Through founding her own art space Kon Len Khnhom Meta really stretched herself beyond her limits, proving that it’s possible to do it if you are willing to let go of control and you are guided by sheer passion.

Coming into contact with her passion and determination was a real blast, and keeps on inspiring me!

Here is the link to the piece 

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konlen
This Saturday 10th February 2018 I’m going to have a talk at the art space in Kon Len Khnhom in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

For this art talk, I’ll be sharing about my own experience and methodology in researching the emerging art scenes. Meanwhile, I will also present my findings about the Cambodian art scene so far and ask feedback from the audience to analyse together these different aspect of the art scene.

Please drop by if you are in town!

Here is the link to the fb event

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cambodiaspaces
In freelance writing there is a time to sow and a time to harvest. In the past couple of months I have written a few articles that have been published all in these last few days. It always a joy to see my words in print, so if you are around Singapore grab a copy of this month’s Art Republik.

You will find a piece on two very interesting art spaces in Phnom Penh, with my interviews to the fantastic Meta Moeng and Erin Gleeson, who are both greatly contributing in animating the local art scene.

Here’s the link to the pdf version of the piece

 

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