Sihanouk’s empty villas captured on film

[geovalin]

Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon

 

Ahead of a new exhibition of his work, Tioulong, which documents the abandoned villas of the late King Father Norodom Sihanouk’s Kirirom resort, Battambang-born photographer Kim Hak, 35, spoke with Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon.

What was the genesis for this project?

My work in the past has focused a lot on architecture documentation. Like my series ON, in 2010, or my series Someone that I did between 2011 and 2014 in Kep. Both of these series talk about architecture documentation. So when last year and this year I went to Kirirom while working on my new project titled My Beloved – which I’ve been doing for the past five years – I saw a lot of old villas spread out in the forest. So I separated Tioulong from My Beloved. My Beloved is from throughout Cambodia, while Tioulong is just in Kirirom. The idea for me working on this project is that I want to document all these landscapes. That is at the same time an architectural documentation that shows the olden times, and to understand more about this area before it disappears. I’m sure it will soon be lost. Even when I went to work on Someone – when I went back, many [villas] had disappeared, and I’m sure [Tioulong] will be the same.

 

Themes such as memory and history pervade your work. How did you try to capture these concepts with Tioulong?

I was born after the Khmer Rouge – I’ve been hearing a lot of the stories from my parents or relatives talking about the past. Little by little those inspired me … to link the past to the present: the photos are taken in the present time but they link to the past. The old villas there, I went there many times, many years ago, I saw they were already destroyed, but now that I go back I see even more they are destroyed. I want to show the people that they should see them all before they disappear.

 

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-- © Copyright Phenom Pen Post 08/10

[Khon Kaen Dave]

Ermmmm,not really.Thanks,but no thanks

[fish monger]

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So where are the photos...?

[phuketrichard]

Hmmm i have seen few empty /abandoned  villas in shv but many in Kep

 

agree with this 100%

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I’ve been shooting in film for the past five years. I’m talking about revival and film in Cambodia – it’s almost dead, nobody uses it anymore. [So] the idea for this project is kind of [about] loss, and I want to bring it back. Film takes more time: you have to think more … When you see the mood of the film it’s different than digital, there’s more detail. It needs photographers to think before taking photos

 

[Sheryl]

I think the focus is not SHV but villas belonging to that late Prince/King Sihanouk