Nur Hanim Mohamed Khairuddin
Work in the exhibition "Nafas"

The ugly theatres of propaganda performed by Western media agencies enormously traumatise the followers of Islam. Islamic masses have been appended with unruly 'interpellations' indicative of a civilisational conflict and cultural ignorance: beard, turban, chador, burqa, harem, kalashnikov, jihad, mullah-primitive, dangerous, violent, enemies, beasts; orthodox, anti-feminism, sadistic, anti-modernism, terrorist, tyrant, militant. Being a Malay Muslim woman, I feel myself stuck in a dilemma. One part of me favours the modern world, sometimes "westoxifying" myself. The other side within me tries very hard to stick to the principles of Islam and my culture. My video is a personal answer towards contemporary radical political dialectics and social discourse unleashing uncertainties, dilemmas, predicaments, and dissatisfaction towards the absolute truth of the Islamic faiths. These dynamic and existential factors perturb the communities; thus generating a crisis of identity, feelings of isolation and alienation, social 'decentering', designification, deconstruction of meanings etc.

In the introduction of the video, a self-portrait slowly surfaces that is gradually swarmed by 'insects' that finally compose an image of a burqa / purdah-clad feature. Music played by a collective underground band named 'Kakabara' is being performed throughout the video. A poem recited in Malay by emerging local poet Amirul Fakir entitled 'Akulah Perang' ('I am war') echoes in the background. At the very end, my portrait re-emerges and recedes placidly. This is to show that no matter what happens, it is our soul that has to posses and maintain all the strengths in order to 'live life long in peace with oneself through reconciliation of one's own identity with globalisation.

'Serangga' means insect.
'Serang' means attack.
'Rangga' means label/status.
'Rang' means something like druming sounds.

Statement of the artist

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