Artist
Ei Myat Noe Khin
Title
Daze | Neon Isolation
Date2024
MediumAcrylic paint, oil pastel, and photo collage on canvas
Dimensions48 x 30 in. (121.9 x 76.2 cm)
Object numberDCCAH2026.016
ClassificationsPaintings
Locations
Martin Luther King, Jr. Library (901 G St NW)
DescriptionIn downtown Yangon, Myanmar, apartment buildings stand tightly packed with barely any space between them. As a single woman living alone – still an uncommon choice for Burmese women – Khin became the subject of unwanted attention from her neighbors, especially when she was on her balcony. During Myanmar’s 2021 prodemocracy protests, however, the artist began to appreciate her balcony as a vantage point to watch for signs of a military presence and as a perch to shout warnings to protesters. It also became a place where she connected with her neighbors-turned-allies in the streets below. Daze | Neon Isolation depicts the artist’s experience of these protests and layers a self-portrait taken on her balcony with a photo of makeshift barricades erected to prevent the military from entering her neighborhood. Using bright colors such as neon green to represent dissociation and teardrop-shaped strokes to represent the complex emotions the artist was experiencing, this work captures a moment of grief and hope from two perspectives.
