Nora Taylor on Vietnam's Contemporary Arts Scene in Los Angeles Times

In the Los Angeles Times, Nora Taylor, Alsdorf Professor of South and Southeast Asian Art History, commented on the expanding contemporary arts scene in Vietnam and a current exhibition showing Vietnamese artists in Los Angeles. The exhibition, Where the Sea Remembers is “a project showcasing work from an emerging generation of Vietnamese artists at the Mistake Room exhibition space in South L.A.”, the article states.

Taylor speaks about the shift in Vietnamese art after Vietnam was opened to the outside world. “Because of its isolation, Vietnam was shut off from most global contemporary art movements,” she says. Taylor explains that while traditional Vietnamese art is often patriotic, focusing on rural landscapes, the new generation with the access of the Internet was able to be exposed to contemporary art and the trend began to evolve. However, Where the Sea Remembers doesn’t seem interested in “engaging certain politics,” Taylor says. It’s more interested in “the politics of memory and refugees.” Where the Sea Remembers is on view through October 12 at the Mistake Room in Los Angeles.