Tuan Andrew Nguyen. Our Ghosts Live in the Future
By Charlotte Stace
Fundació Joan Miró presents the first solo exhibition in Spain of Vietnamese-American artist Tuan Andrew Nguyen, winner of the 8th edition of the Joan Miró Prize. It includes some of his most poignant video installations, as well as a selection of his sculptures made with discarded bombs and artillery shells left over from the Vietnam War.
Born in Saigon, his parents left the country during what is known as the "boat people'' migration, and settled in the US as refugees. This experience is at the core of Nguyen’s creative output - especially after moving back to Vietnam in search of his roots.
The exhibition not only includes projects that revolve around the human and material consequences of the two Vietnam wars, but it also establishes a dialogue between Joan Miró and Alexander Calder, both proponents of Western art of the Cold War era. That dialogue is voiced by both the characters in Nguyen's films and installations, and the artworks and objects featured in these projects.