SELF-PORTRAITS (2005-2006)

Vandy Rattana makes – as he himself puts it – non-traditional SELF-PORTRAITS (2005-2006). Although he does not appear in any of the photographs himself, he does provide a true-to-life image of his immediate environment. For instance, we see his mother and brother at his home, his girlfriend and neighbors in their homes, his colleagues in the office. The result is an authentic visual archive that provides a counterbalance to the clichéd image of Cambodia as the land of monks, temples and beggars. Moreover, much of the national archives were lost in the war. Visual material about previous generations is hardly available. That makes the recording of history something of the greatest importance, Vandy Rattana suggests. Certainly because Cambodia, despite all the rapid changes, still shows little interest in documenting its own society.