The Buddhist Bug, Into the Night

‘The Buddhist Bug’ is a series of performances in which Anida Yoeu Ali interacts with and documents Cambodia’s rapidly changing urban and rural landscapes. Ali playfully inhabits a sinuous, caterpillar-like costume whose colour references the robes of Buddhist monks, and whose hood resembles a hijab. In a range of carefully staged scenarios, the bug moves with slow, inquisitive gestures and captures the reactions of amused passers-by in photographs and on video.

The Buddhist Bug, Into the Night shows the bug in its first night-time appearance, capturing intriguing scenarios throughout Phnom Penh, including popular twilight haunts.

Ali started the project in 2012 when she returned to her birthplace of Cambodia, having left as a child during the Khmer Rouge period (1975–79). It is a way for her, a Khmer-Muslim, to express her fascination with Buddhism and document her homeland, a country that has suffered traumatic losses, by including archives and documentation relating to Cambodia’s development.

Exhibited in 'The 8th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT8)' | 21 Nov 2015 – 10 Apr 2016