WONG WINSOME DUMALAGAN
Title Handwriting by Lorna
𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒂’𝒔 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚
安娜的派對
Multichannel Video and photography installation, 2022
More information:
https://www.floatingprojectscollective.net/art-notes/winsome-wong-lornas-party
𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒂’𝒔 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚 is a space filled with multichannel video and photography installation portraying Lorna’s parties and family gatherings in Hong Kong. Lorna is a Filippina who has been in Hong Kong for more than 30 years. Overtime, she has gradually found her place in Hong Kong where she could run a small business and hold parties for her own happiness. The images about the family gatherings in the Philippines are taken in 2010 and 2019, while the images of the parties held at her shop are taken since 2019, these images are contained in the 15-channels video installation and more than 30 household picture frames of different sizes.
Even though as her daughter, I’ve witnessed the different relationships among a lot of people around her and the come and go of people since I was young, her memories and impressions must differ from mine, and what she likes and hopes for would be different from me as well. I’m still curious about what we could mashup or crash, as a record between the two of us, while I feel like capturing her is a kind of game of fun between us. The reality is always mixed with gravel and twinges, but I hope she could still be surrounded by hazy blissfulness.
安娜來了香港三十多年，存在於香港的時間比我還要久，那也很合理，因爲她來了香港才會發生之後的各種事情然後我才會在這個世界出現。喜歡唱歌喜歡說個不停，有時對我來說太噪的她也慢慢在香港找到自己的地方可以搞搞小生意搞搞派對熱鬧開心一下。而每年她也會盡量回菲律賓一次，兒時我也會常常跟她回去，但之後便越來越少了。
《安娜的派對》以錄像裝置嘗試呈現我主動或被動有參與的，安娜在香港以及菲律賓的聚會和派對。雖然自小看著圍繞在她身邊不同人的各種關係和故事以及人的來來去去，我想安娜的記憶印象和我的大概一定會有出入吧。她喜歡和希望的也一定和我有所出入，但我也決定看看能和她撞出些甚麼來，作爲我們之間的一種記錄，而拍攝她對我來説也算是和她的一種遊戲玩樂。現實總摻雜碎石和刺痛，但希望她最後還是能被朦朧的快樂包裹著。
Lorna has been in Hong Kong for more than 30 years. She has stayed in Hong Kong longer than I have; but that’s very reasonable. I exist in the world because she came to Hong Kong and encountered different things. She likes singing and talking, and could be too noisy to me sometimes. Overtime, she has gradually found her place in Hong Kong where she could run a small business and hold parties for her own happiness. She would make a trip back to the Philippines once a year and often brought me with her when I was a kid. But as I grew older, I went less often.
𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒂’𝒔 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚 is my attempt, through multiple video installations, to portray those parties and gatherings Lorna has organized, both in Hong Kong and in the Philippines, which I sometimes volunteered or passively joined. Indeed, I have witnessed the different relationships among a lot of people around her as much as their come-and-go since I was young, but her memories and impressions must have differed from mine, and so would what we like and aspire. I am still curious about what we could mashup or where we would crash. So, this event is itself a record between the two of us in interaction. It should be a game full of fun between us to be captured. Reality is always mixed with gravel and twinges, but I am all out for her to be surrounded by hazy blissfulness.
Works:
There’s no particular order, feel free to walk around.
1. Welcome
2. Alley Alley
3. Lorna’s Party: Philippines
4. Lorna’s digital camera 2010
5. Carousel No.1
6. Unspoken
7. Karaoke
8. Photos at home
9. Balcony
10 Carousel No.2
11. Lorna’s Party: Hong Kong
12. Hug Dance Hug
13. Dagat
14. The Displays.Net
Welcome and Alley Alley are the entrances of Lorna’s place in Hong Kong, a small place with mixed and flexible function at an alley, crowded at daytime but could be different at night time, and different possibilities could happen at the small unnoticeable buildings there. Work 3-10 are about different perspectives seen during our visits to the Philippines in 2010 and 2019, the love for karaoke didn’t change much though. There are always a lot of photos hang at my family’s house in the Philippines, so I thought of displaying the family photos here too. In Unspoken, not much sound would be heard, the words should be kept among us, but the night when we got drunk is actually nice although they get emotional. Work 11 and 14 are the different scenes of parties and behind the parties that I witnessed, including the use of social media to stay connected. I also took plenty photos of my mom since 2017, thinking the way she dresses up is quite fun and the photoshoot could be a game for us. People come and go at my mom’s place, and her time with her siblings is always so precious, Hug Dance Hug captures the short moment of hug and dance, that could mean a lot in one action, while you may not know when would you see them again next time. Dagat means the sea, I just miss the family trip to the beach where the kids and uncles and aunties all enjoyed, with a wonderful sunset.
Notes:
This graph shows my state of mind when creating the works. I can’t help thinking about the correlations among different moments I experienced and witnessed with Lorna. Doing something about my family in the Philippines and Lorna’s place where I always visit in Hong Kong, it’s hard for me to represent them with clean and focused linear structure. It’s always scattered around, intertwining, and mixed with my different memories.
I went back to visit my family in the Philippines with Lorna in 2019, while the last time I visited was in 2010. And later on I accidentally found images and videos of the 2010 visit taken by the digital camera Lorna bought. When I see my family in the Philippines, I can’t help thinking back my memories about them as a kid, since they are almost the direct linkage I have with them. But after 9 years, a lot of things in the family are still very similar. There would always be complicated issues in a big family, while family gathering and family is an occasion to forget about the harsh reality for a while and have some fun. I needed time to adapt, while seeing Lorna going back tothe place where she would feel like home.
I would always go to Lorna’s shop located in an alley to visit her. While I always refused to attend her parties before. I tried to celebrate with her more often in recent years. They do have fun at the parties. But after all people come and go using their own ways. Hong Kong is not a destination, people come to Hong Kong for different reasons, they may carry a different role in weekdays but another identity on weekends. Sometimes people there talk to me about their daily lives but I seldom ask. Sometimes I feel like leaving spaces to be unstated would be better for them, to survive in their own ways in Hong Kong with pride.
Deciding the use of footages, images and words are difficult for me. I still don’t think I can tell you about the parties. But you can take a look at my different observations. It’s a note taking categorization for me at this stage, and depending how much time you could spend around at a party and look at the people and places and listen, maybe it could get different each time. But no matter what, I still hope this could be a fun space for you to walk around, and I hope Lorna enjoys this space about my experience with her. One day, like how she once left her homeland, we may eventually have different destinations. At least now we are having some fun together.
2022 Lorna's Party, Solo Exhibition, Floating Projects, Hong Kong
安娜的派對 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒂’𝒔 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚
by Wong Winsome Dumalagan 黃慧心
16.9 - 9.10. 2022
JCCAC L3-06D Floating Projects
Supported by 資助 :
Hong Kong Arts Development Council | 香港藝術發展局
香港藝術發展局全力支持藝術表達自由，本計劃內容並不反映本局意見。
Hong Kong Arts Development Council fully supports freedom of artistic expression. The views and opinions expressed in this project do not represent the stand of the Council.
Photos by Wong Pak Hang and Masahiro Nakamura