MICHELLE NGUYEN
Medium Spicy 2
Medium Spicy 2 is presented by Asian-Australian artist collective Big Bao. A second iteration of Medium Spicy 2019, this virtual project pairs 3 sound artists with 3 visual artists to create a series of works bringing together the richness of the Asian-Australian creative experience. These works were presented as part of Multicultural Arts Victoria's (MAV) Mapping Melbourne 2020-21 online event.
“In this project, we want to be able to give audiences the chance to share a contemporary understanding of Asian-Australian community with us, beyond the red bean cakes and straw mat gatherings portrayed in stereotyped understandings of Asian diaspora. As migrants and children of migrants, these contemporary understandings start within our personal worlds and move beyond them, into our families, communities, double identities and ancestors.
We hope that Medium Spicy 2 can be a way to share these feelings and moods.” - Big Bao
Check out the recorded event here (which includes artist interviews) as well as more information about Medium Spicy on MAV's website.
The combination of fast and slow elements in both the visuals and sound conveys the experience of our Asian-Australian identities and the tension of being part of two cultures. Existing between fast and slow, or Asian and Australian, is a space where we can explore a ‘medium’ within creativity and identity.
For this project I had the pleasure of working with Grace Quiason again after we met through the SIGNAL commission.
This picture is from our recorded artist talk where we go through themes, inspirations, and process.
