SALEM, MA –The Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) presents 54 short videos in an exhibition exploring the role of hope in contemporary art and activism.
Organized by the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, After Hope: Videos of Resistance is an immersive experience in PEM’s Jeffrey P. Beale Gallery featuring the perspectives of contemporary Asian filmmakers, including artists from Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Mongolia, Myanmar, Turkey and other regions that are underrepresented in North American art museums. After Hope is on view at PEM from March 11 through December 31, 2023.
The films, some of which are only a few minutes long, touch on a vast range of issues, including environmental degradation and eco-feminism, transgressive histories and speculative futures, censorship and resilience, the power of song, narratives of exile and diaspora and the loss of identity in the rush to embrace globalized capitalism. Collectively, these films ask us how hope drives us to imagine new worlds.
“Though the specific issues and causes addressed here may at first seem fragmented, they cohere as you watch and reflect the all-too-familiar feeling of finding our way during this uncertain time of war, pandemic and environmental crisis,” said organizing curator Dan Finamore, PEM’s Associate Director – Exhibitions, and The Russell W. Knight Curator of Maritime Art and History. “As visitors create connections between the videos, they may begin to reflect on the role hope plays in their own lives and in their communities.”
Eclectic in nature, these short works entice audiences to linger in the gallery and to keep coming back for more. Viewers are encouraged to return to experience different parts of the program. Accompanying the 6.5-hour single-screen visual projection are drawings, photos, booklets and posters from international artists that provide additional context. The project also has a dedicated website, afterhope.com. Some videos on view contain sensitive content, so visitor discretion is advised.
“This exhibition presents a surprisingly emotional experience, and our intent is that people come away with a broader, richer, more timely understanding of Asia,” said supporting curator Stephanie Hueon Tung, PEM’s Byrne Family Curator of Photography. “Hope is something all of us are seeking. It propels us and moves us. Hope is essential for survival and change.”
FEATURED FILMMAKERSAgil Abdullayev · Alison Nguyen · Angela Su · Arahmaiani · Ariuntugs Tserenpil · Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook · Ashley Yang Thompson · Basel Abbas and Ruanne Abou-Rahme · Bolortuvshin Jargalsaikhan · Bonam Kim · Chaw Ei Thein · Chitra Ganesh · Choi Sai-ho · Chulayarnnon Siriphol · Connie Zheng · Elena Artemenko · Emin Azizbayli · Evgeny Granilshchikov · Fang Lu · Gazelle Samizay · Gulnara Kasmalieva and Muratbek Djumaliev · Htein Lin · Isa Ho · J Triangular · Jane Jin Kaisen · Jeamin Cha · Kia LaBeija · Labkhand Olfatmanesh · Lam Tung Pang · Lausan Collective · Le Mediator · Lo Lai-lai Natalie · Mehregan Pezeshki · Minoosh Zomorodinia · Nguyen Tan Hoang · Nyein Chan Su · Ohm Phanphiroj · Oliver Herring · Orkhan Huseynov · Özgür Atlagan · Reena Saini Kallat · Shoaib Daniyal · Shun Wint Aung · Sutthirat Supaparinya · Thukral and Tagra · Tiffany Chung · Tina Takemoto · Tong Wenmin · Tsui Kuang-Yu · Tuguldur Yondonjamts · Xiaoze Xie · Yasmin Jahan Nupur · Yelena and Viktor Vorobyev · Yuan Goang-Ming · Zamir Suleymanov · Zeina Barakeh · Zeynep Kayan · Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
