Dinh Q. Lê
Untitled (Hill of Poisonous Tree series), 2008
C-prints and linen tape
46 7/8 x 70 7/8 in
119 x 180 cm
119 x 180 cm
The two overlapping images originate from distinct sources: the portrait merges two mugshots from the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum in Phnom Penh, which was once a prison and interrogation center...
The two overlapping images originate from distinct sources: the portrait merges two mugshots from the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum in Phnom Penh, which was once a prison and interrogation center where 20,000 detainees suffered and died under the Khmer Rouge regime (Communist Party of Kampuchea) from 1975 to 1979. These original photographs serve as a poignant visual memorial to those who perished during this dark period, prominently displayed in the museum. The second image, captured by Lê, is of the prison cells of the Tuol Sleng Prison. By intertwining these images, the artist critiques how photography and photojournalistic representations are often regarded in the media as definitive accounts of events, despite their inherent limitations in conveying the complexity of situations like war and forced migration. "Untitled" is part of Dinh Q. Lê’s series "The Hill of Poisonous Trees" (2008), named after the museum. The term "Tuol Sleng" translates from Khmer, the official language of Cambodia, as "poisonous hill" or a burial mound for the dead. Lê, who was born in the southern city of Ha Thien on the Vietnamese-Cambodian border, fled to the United States with his family but returned to Vietnam as an adult.
Provenance
Vietnamese-American artist Dinh Q. Lê was a distinguished artist in photography, film and installation and is considered one of Vietnam's most significant contemporary artists. His practice challenges how our memories are recalled and how society archives the evidence of human suffering. Le's work elucidates his commitment to the artistic process as a means of excavating history and the uncovering and revealing of alternate ideas of loss and redemption. As a child of the war and a migrant to the USA, his work was shaped by the lens of finding his identity through his individual and his country’s collective experience. Lê returned to Vietnam in 1993 and stayed until the sudden end of his life last year. Lê’s series of photo-weavings was initiated by his search of his real and imagined memories of the Vietnam war. His complex tapestries intertwine Vietnam movie images, found photographs and Buddhist icons to weave together his personal memories and how the war was perceived by the outside. His works have been exhibited at and/or collected by institutions worldwide including the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA), the Tate Modern, The Mori Museum, The Carnegie International, the Venice Biennale, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the San Jose Museum of Art, among many others.
Artist's CV: http://website-artlogicwebsite0954.artlogic.net/usr/library/documents/main/artists/32/dql-cv-2025.pdf