KONG Dara

My drawings titled “Open Mind” were created for a solo exhibition at a gay bar in Phnom Penh. The work consists of three interrelated series of drawings on paper, as well as two wall drawings. These works draw on my research related with the gay community: the concept of the exhibition was inspired by the ordinary gay life that the artist finds surrounding me. My idea is that if you want to know about gay life, you can’t only look at the Internet, you have to go and see the real activity that people do every day, and especially their jobs. My process in making these works was about research, not only drawing – it included many conversations with the owners of bars, hotels, clubs and resorts. Some people think that gay people only work in gay bars or in hair salons, or else work at night. But I feel really proud of gay people, because they do much more than what people think. Gay people can do many things, just the same as any other people. I try to show this in my drawings, in playful and poetic ways. Alongside I research, which has been based mostly in talking and sharing opinions together with gay friends in Phnom Penh and elsewhere, I has also experimented with a variety of drawing techniques. Portraits of friends and others hang alongside colorful drawings of fruits and vegetables in playful positions. “Open Mind” hopes to encourage all kinds of viewers to understand more about gay life and the gay community in Phnom Penh.

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For me, art is an important way that people can share to everywhere and learn together. When you go to see an artwork, you will start thinking. “What is that?” “Why did the artist do that like this?” Asking questions like these mean that when looking at artwork, you use your mind to think in ways that you will remember and never forget. With this in mind, my drawings from the exhibition “Open Mind” are memories from my own personal history, and histories shared with other people. I have learned that you have to know yourself first, and know what you want to do.