Things Hidden
Things Hidden, 2022, Bi’s thread; chiffon; correspondence, crucifix, fragments of unread letters, and thread inherited from Bà Ngoại (Grandmother); copies of family members’ immigration paperwork, green cards, and Việt Nam identification cards; copies my father-in-law’s release papers from the reeducation camp in Việt Nam, stained with tea harvested in Việt Nam; ink from typewriter inherited from Cô Bé; photographic prints from family archive; South Việt Nam đồng as printed before 1975, and tree branches collected with Jenny during walks through her woodland sanctuary
Things Hidden examines the life of the object in relationship to the life of the individual, and the dependency that one has upon the other.
Peoples from all parts of earth have shared countless stories of how the clothing on their bodies have been used as repositories for valuable objects during migration and escape from war. They tell stories of sewing keepsakes into the hems of garments to safeguard them from pirates, thieves, and the unforgiving environments through which they navigate in search for safety, new opportunities, and home.
As the lives of our vulnerable populations balance precariously upon the actions of the courts, the people, and the self, Things Hidden further speaks on the things we hide, the things we reveal, and the prudence that we must practice in discerning to whom, at what time, and how to reveal, if it is wise to do so at all.
The garments—some made from patterns inherited from Bà Ngoại and from clothing worn by family members—both conceal and reveal photographs of loved ones, religious items, money, and important documents. With a typewriter that I inherited from my youngest auntie, I have transcribed onto the delicate fabric firsthand and inherited memories; scripture that speaks on the love for the stranger, the admonishment of oppressors, and the petition for freedom from oppression; and free-writing on the perversion of the laws that we look to protect us. The ghostly posture of the garments references those whom we have lost to bloodshed.
Echoing the ephemeral life, they suspend from delicate branches, which have been severed from living trees that still serve as a foundation upon which generations of life cling. As inheritor of these histories comes an immense responsibility to be receptacles for the treasured articles that help preserve the stories of humanity in our fragility and vitality, to be the ones that reveal the things that risk being hidden and forgotten.
Things Hidden debuts at Triton Museum of Art as part of Understory: As retold by Trinh Mai & Birds.
The garments hang from delicate branches, each from a single thread to further pronounce the fragility of life. Learn more about this project.