'Who is the actual owner of our monuments and how do these monuments take shape?' Tromarama, the artist collective comprising Febie Babyrose, Herbert Hans, and Ruddy Hatumena, raises these questions in Growing Pillars. Commissioned by M+, the moving image work challenges the conception of monuments and their ownership, iconography, and value in contemporary society.
For Growing Pillars, Tromarama selected objects, video clips, and images from their personal archives, such as family photos, cassettes, and books, to compose a filmic movement overlaid by animated objects from their childhood homes. The symbols and motifs are reflective of both the beauty and turbulence of life, while evoking the intimacy of home and the intricacy of memory. Although the personal archives are fragile, they serve as foundational support for growth and forming one's worldview. Tromarama layers the cleaning gesture further onto the moving collage, inspired by a trip to Bali for Melukat, the Balinese tradition to purify the body, mind, and soul.
Growing Pillars is infused with emotion, care, and humour. Presented on the M+ Facade, it creates an ambiguous space where the personal and the societal, the private and the public collide.
Press release courtesy M+.
West Kowloon Cultural District
38 Museum Drive
Kowloon
Hong Kong
www.mplus.org.hk
+852 2200 0217
Tuesday – Sunday, 10am – 6pm
Fridays, 10am – 10pm
Closed Mondays