{"id":1286,"date":"2024-10-02T20:19:34","date_gmt":"2024-10-02T12:19:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/staging.objectifs.com.sg\/?p=1286"},"modified":"2024-12-14T12:02:26","modified_gmt":"2024-12-14T04:02:26","slug":"artist-talk-unbound-by-grace-baey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.objectifs.com.sg\/artist-talk-unbound-by-grace-baey\/","title":{"rendered":"Artist Talk: (UN)BOUND by Grace Baey"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Photograph of Jose, by Grace Baey<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Artist Talk: (UN)BOUND by Grace Baey<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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A discussion with artist Grace Baey and her collaborators for \"(Un)bound\"<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Local photographer\u00a0Grace Baey<\/a>\u00a0is the inaugural recipient of the\u00a0Objectifs Documentary Award 2018<\/a>\u00a0(Emerging Category). Her solo exhibition\u00a0(Un)bound<\/em><\/a>, a collaborative project with and about transgender individuals in Singapore, is on till 14 Apr at Objectifs\u2019 Lower Gallery.<\/p>

On Sat 30 Mar, the eve of the annual International Transgender Day of Visibility, Grace gave an artist talk together with Sonia, Jose and Sham, three of her four key collaborators featured in\u00a0(Un)bound<\/em>. Read on for a recap of their discussion moderated by Chelsea Chua from Objectifs.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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L-R: Irene Barlian, Siddharta Perez<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Path to photography<\/strong><\/p>

Grace studied human geography and international development studies in university and aspired to work in an NGO. She credits her overseas tertiary education with exposing her to \u201cdifferent issues and critical concepts\u201d. She did not plan to be a photographer when she was younger but \u201cthrough images\u201d learnt more about the world around her, by reading publications like\u00a0National Geographic.<\/em><\/p>

After graduation, she worked with low wage migrant workers in Singapore but \u201cgrew restless with research and craved on the ground engagement, in more depth, with the people we were talking about\u201d. In 2015, as a participant in Objectifs\u2019\u00a0Shooting Home<\/a>\u00a0mentorship programme, she made street portraits of transgender women in Little India in the series\u00a08 Women<\/em><\/a>. She sought to examine \u201cwhat trans women\u2019s reactions to the camera were, if they could be on the front page of a fashion magazine how would they want to be seen\u201d?<\/p>

Grace described\u00a08 Women<\/em>\u00a0as a \u201cfleeting project\u201d and felt the need to \u201cpull back\u201d and learn more about transgender people in Singapore before documenting them further. She spent a few years involved with the community and their events, such as assisting Sonia,\u00a0founder and organiser of annual pageants for trans women in Singapore<\/a>, with planning and photography.<\/p>

In 2017, Grace spent a month in Myanmar through\u00a0Objectifs\u2019 reciprocal artist residency<\/a>\u00a0with Yangon-based organisation Myanmar Deitta.\u00a0 She produced the (ongoing) body of work\u00a0Living Choices<\/em><\/a>\u00a0about trans people in Yangon, where she made a gradual shift towards focusing on themes of family and relationships.<\/p>

Friendship first<\/strong><\/p>

As Grace previously shared,\u00a0(Un)bound<\/em>\u00a0is her first project where she \u201cactively involved individuals [she] worked with not just in the image-making process but also in putting together the story edit and narrative\u201d. Three of her four main collaborators each shared how they came to be involved in the project.<\/p>

Jose\u00a0<\/strong>and Grace first met in Malaysia at an event for trans men. Jose said: \u201cWe built a friendship for more than a year first. I was reluctant at first as the project would involve revealing quite a bit. If you\u2019d asked me three or four years ago I wouldn\u2019t have agreed as my dysphoria was bad.\u201d Jose shared that notions of masculinity and femininity can be a divisive point in segments of the trans men community. He said: \u201cSome believe it only \u2018counts\u2019 if you are taking hormones. But transitioning is not just about the physical aspects but also emotionally and mentally.\u201d After building trust with Grace, he felt comfortable collaborating on a series of portraits showing his use of a binder.<\/p>

Sonia<\/strong>\u2019s friendship with Grace grew while they worked together on the beauty pageants. Sonia said: \u201cI immediately said yes to the project due to the trust I have with Grace. The public should know about us and our experiences.\u201d Her favourite images are the \u201cglamourous pictures in sarees, taken at Tekka\u201d.<\/p>

Found families<\/strong><\/p>

Grace shared that the theme of family came up naturally, and that \u201cwe were in mutual agreement to keep the focus on the theme of family as it might be more productive, personal yet universal\u201d.\u00a0Sham<\/strong>, a trans man who is married to a woman, agreed that \u201cfamily provides an entry point [to the topic] for people who are otherwise not familiar\u201d.<\/p>

Sonia shared how trans women organise themselves in informal families, as \u201csome of us have to put aside our [biological] families when we transition\u201d, with some trans women referring to their peers as \u201csisters\u201d and mentors as \u201cmummies\u201d. In her experience, ultimately her biological family \u201cwas there to bless [her] wedding\u201d, which meant a lot to her and her late husband.<\/p>

Jose shared that such a system does not really exist among trans men and that it took almost two or three years for his family to reconcile. In his experience, it was a \u201cstruggle for\u00a0full<\/em>\u00a0acceptance\u201d, and that \u201cwhen an individual is transitioning, the whole family is transitioning\u201d.<\/p>

Yet, he did not plan to give up on his family, and reflected that there still existed \u201cmutual love in different forms\u201d despite points of disagreement and conflict.<\/p>

Similarly,\u00a0Cassandra<\/strong>\u00a0(another of the individuals featured in\u00a0(Un)bound<\/em>\u00a0but who was not on the panel) received letters from her aunt and grandma, which are on display in the exhibition, who expressed concerns about the physical costs of transitioning, like possible unintended effects of medication.<\/p>

Art and advocacy<\/strong><\/p>

Jose, Sonia and Sham are all involved in advocacy in various forms and shared how collaborating with Grace on\u00a0(Un)bound<\/em>\u00a0differed or impacted their subsequent approach. Grace said: \u201cMy approach has evolved from traditional documentary to collaborative projects. As I\u2019m still an outsider entering this space, it wouldn\u2019t be right to exclude their advocacy. Scrapbooking offered a more flexible medium, and it was a fun exercise too, in terms of putting together their stories\u201d.<\/p>

Sonia shared that \u201cnormally we won\u2019t be so open, share everything from A-Z\u201d because she has felt misrepresented by the media in the past. With\u00a0(Un)bound<\/em>, she felt there was much more trust and openness. She has seen that some trans people are \u201cpushed to drugs because of issues like loneliness\u201d and seeks to \u201cmove trans women away from sex work\u201d as it is not sustainable, especially with age. She advocates for them to pick up a skill that can translate into gainful employment.<\/p>

Sham founded a support group called\u00a0Kopitiam Brothers<\/a>\u00a0for trans men. He deliberately \u201cdidn\u2019t choose an\u00a0atas<\/em>\u00a0[high class] name but something very local to keep it very accessible\u201d. Like Jose he has also worked with the community in Malaysia and shared that there are differences in the key issues facing the trans community on both sides of the Causeway, in terms of \u201cmoney and privilege\u201d. Jose agreed, highlighting that in Singapore advocacy focuses on legal aspects such as gender markers on official documents (with Sonia adding that \u201cbeing able to change our [gender identity on our] ICs and passports is itself a blessing\u201d) while in Malaysia crime is an issue, and the pressing need to address is violence against trans people.<\/p>

Jose acknowledged there are disagreements within the community on what defines a trans man, and who should be included. Some feel that there is room for lesbian and\/or butch women while others do not. He does not believe in some of the stereotypes around masculinity, or that trans men should meet certain \u201cstandards\u201d which are inaccessible to some, like older trans men who only come out in their 50s. Jose said: \u201cIf you know who you are, that\u2019s all that should matter. I currently do things in my own time, in my own way. I just listen to people without judgment.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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(Un)bound<\/em>\u00a0by Grace Baey runs till 14 Apr at Objectifs\u2019 Lower Gallery. Admission is free. Please note the exhibition is rated Restricted 18 (Transgender Theme and Some Nudity). Age-checks may be required prior to entering the gallery. Read our interview with Grace about\u00a0(Un)bound\u00a0<\/em>here<\/a>\u00a0and press coverage in\u00a0The Straits Times<\/a>,\u00a0<\/em>Coconuts Singapore<\/em><\/a>,\u00a0 and\u00a0CLEO<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>

Also on till 14 Apr in Objectifs\u2019 Chapel Gallery is\u00a063 Years<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>by Mai Nguyen Anh, inaugural recipient of the\u00a0Objectifs Documentary Award 2018<\/a>\u00a0(Open Category). Read our interview with him\u00a0here<\/a>\u00a0and stay tuned for a recap of his conversation with\u00a063 Years<\/em>\u00a0curator Sam I-shan.<\/p>

Applications are open till 13 May for the Objectifs Documentary Award 2019. Visit our website\u00a0here<\/a>\u00a0for more information.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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