Join esea contemporary in Manchester for a special screening of 'Community of Parting' by Jane Jin Kaisen at the School of Digital Arts (SODA), MMU. This off-site screening, co-presented with Modal Gallery, showcases Kaisen's powerful 2019 film from 11 January to 25 January 2024. The film will be shown in a continuous loop, starting every 1.5 hours from Monday to Friday, between 12 pm and 5 pm. Admission is free, offering visitors the chance to experience Kaisen's thought-provoking work. On 18 January, attendees can participate in a screening followed by an artist talk with Jane Jin Kaisen, moderated by Xiaowen Zhu, the Director of esea contemporary. Booking is essential for this event.
'Community of Parting' takes a unique approach to exploring borders, translation, and aesthetic mediation, drawing from the ancient shamanic myth of the Abandoned Princess Bari and female Korean shamanism. Kaisen presents the myth as a narrative of gender transgression and resilience, challenging division logics and embracing memory and mutual recognition. This multi-layered film weaves together imagery from various locations, including Jeju Island, the DMZ, South Korea, North Korea, Kazakhstan, Japan, China, the United States, and Germany. Through shamanic ritual performances, poetry, and archival material, Kaisen constructs a narrative that explores migration, marginalization, and gender bias. The film invites audiences to contemplate alternative ways of thinking and being with others, fostering connections to nature and other life-forms.
This screening is part of the public programme of 'Jane Jin Kaisen: Halmang'. esea contemporary is the UK's leading non-profit art centre dedicated to promoting and supporting East and Southeast Asian (ESEA) cultural backgrounds. Situated in Manchester, esea contemporary offers a dynamic space for cross-cultural exchanges and has become a vital platform for contemporary art from the ESEA communities and their diasporas. Through exhibitions, commissions, research, residencies, and public events, esea contemporary aims to increase the visibility of ESEA artists and foster creativity, compassion, interconnectedness, and collectivity.
For more information about this event, please visit the esea contemporary website.