Nguyễn + Transitory and Bussaraporn Thongchai, thres|hold, 2025
Sound installation, synthesizer, etched copper, bronze
Even before entering the exhibition space at KINDL, visitors can hear the sound installation thres|hold. Nguyễn + Transitory (*1991 in Germany and *1982 in Singapore) and Bussaraporn Thongchai (*1985 in Thailand) invite active participation. A synthesizer, mounted high on the wall, is connected by cables to etched copper plates installed below. Each touch of the copper alters the relentless pulse of the soundscape. Scattered almost casually across the floor, hand-sized bronze pieces echo the imagery of the etchings – delicate, semi-abstracted, lifeless insect bodies. In the exchange between the work and its audience, an intimate yet ephemeral space emerges, challenging the passivity between viewer and object. The sensory dimension of the exhibition takes precedence: sounds generated through touch disrupt the traditional museum gaze that separates objects from bodies. The artists reflect on the pressures of adaptation, and the dislocated experiences shared by Southeast Asian migrant women. The installation opens a site where the thresholds of existences connect and dialogue through the non-verbal.