š§Ā listen to the piece
Program Note
Here the myth is Asian identity. The longer sÄgar lives in the diaspora, the more that an Indian or Asian identity feels like a constructed fiction. This sculpture pulls together various diasporic, liminal, and domestic materials like the bamboo leaf, safety pins, mirror and gold sequins used in decor or costuming, and twines. The process of building was improvisational, a constant search for where each fits in and the resulting sprawling shape captures the fluidity and and dynamic nature of who we are and who we become based on context and environment rather than solely the identity from which we are born. The materials each have migrated to Baltimore from various homes and have learned to understand each other, the space, and that larger context they exist in.
Heather has created a blossoming soundscape using elements of Korean poetry, Kathak bols (percussive North Indian Compositions), sounds of nature, and a vibraphone to evoke the feeling of spring. The feeling of searching, yearning, and blossoming into a new season of growth and exploration compliments the materials used in the sculpture.
Together, Heather and sÄgar aimed to create an experience of finding and losing oneself.
Currently based in Baltimore, Heather Hyoeun Ahn is a composer from South Korea who explores lyrical, colorful music for chamber and orchestral ensembles. Concentrating on the potential of characteristic sound colors and the unique timbral possibilities of various instruments, she is often inspired by visual art and film to depict imagery through sound. Ahn is currently pursuing her doctoral degree in composition at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, studying with Felipe Lara. Previously, she earned her M.M. in composition at Peabody Institute and her B.M. at Ewha W. University in Seoul, Korea.
sÄgar kÄmath is an interdisciplinary artist working between mediums of painting, sculpture, installation, sound, video, collage, public art, and dance. His practice investigates the multiplicities of his identities as an Indian-born American through narrative building, materiality, line, space, and movement. His research-based methodology simultaneously interrogates his body, the surrounding landscape, and colonial histories through the engagement of non-linear time. sÄgarās art education began at a young age with his father and continued through his time at Pittsburgh CAPA 6-12. sÄgar received his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh and his Master of Fine Arts in Multidisciplinary Art at the Maryland Institute College of Art, Mount Royal School of Art. sÄgar has had exhibitions and performances in Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Philadelphia, Baltimore, New York, and Washington DC. In May 2023, sÄgar was invited as an Artist-in-Residence for the Smithsonianās National Museum of Asian Artās Centennial celebration.