HA HA HA
IS THIS A JOKE?
Hello, my name is Tu, like the number, number 2. I often make works about myself because the story of who I am is not just about me, but about the others that contribute to this creation of me-ness. Working as a jazz singer in Vietnam for a few years, I've developed a natural tendency to incorporate improvisation into my art and performance practice. My daily commitment to mindfulness and meditation teaches me to be more accepting of thoughts, feelings, and behaviours of myself and of others. Humour gives me the language to talk about the elephant in the room and to turn discomfort into nervous laughter.
Be Free - Be You - Dit Me May (2022)
Multimedia Installation
By combining customised emoji stickers with pieces of personal information, Tu Pham’s installation creates a space of sincerity and irony. Although there is sweetness in her voice, the collection of incohesive images, lighting and objects causes an interruption. Using the offensive Vietnamese curse phrase ‘Dit Me May’ next to the positive message ‘Be Free - Be You’, Tu Pham hints at her cultural background and subverts the calling for happiness and freedom. She invites us to wander into a paradoxical world of reassurance and unsettlement.
