Allegory of Elsewhere: Traces of Strangers
10 AM – 12 PM, Sat 22 Aug 2026
EMASI Nam Long
No. 147, Street no. 8, Nam Long Residential Area, Tan Thuan Ward, HCMC
Language: English & Vietnamese
Registration link
From the organizer:
An artist’s world is lived multiple times: when it is imagined, when it is created, when it is told, and when it is perceived. The world of imagination is powerful – perhaps too powerful. In Plato’s allegory of the cave, even those freed from captivity may desire to return to the cave, accepting the shadows cast by the fire onto the dark walls as reality. Our journeys elsewhere often begin in much the same way: with an imagined place, shaped by stories, images, perceptions, and prejudices long before we encounter it ourselves. An allegory of a place, whether constructed through narrative or visual representation, gives form to this imagination, allowing a place to stand for meanings beyond itself. Elsewhere is anywhere but here. But what does the elsewhere look like? Is it uncanny? Uncomfortable? Dangerous? Boring? Irrelevant?
What is an allegory of elsewhere, then? How might the imagination of a land guide us towards somewhere, while perception, emotion, and personal memories lead us astray – from somewhere to elsewhere, and perhaps eventually to nowhere?
Join exhibition curator Vicky Do for a walkthrough of ‘Mạch ngầm [counter-place]’ at EMASI Nam Long, where our perceptions of elsewhere are constructed upon the traces left behind by those who have come before us. Together, we will visit the worlds of the artists and contemplate our own positions within them, often shaped by the juxtaposition of the artworks, texts and exhibition space.
Curated by Vicky Do, ‘Mạch ngầm [counter-place]’ develops from an ongoing thesis conceived in the form of an Atlas. Taking the landscapes that underlie the artworks at its point of departure, the thesis draws upon concepts from geography and geology to reconsider history and human’s place within the environments that have witnessed the rise and fall of civilizations. Centering landscape not as a passive backdrop, this exhibition-as-a-thesis proposes an archaeological investigation into the counter-places that exist alongside and beneath officially recognized places, examining and analyzing them through the conceptual propositions embedded within the exhibited artworks and their installations.
‘Mạch Ngầm [counter-place]’ is the first thesis presented as part of Within & Beyond: a Taxonomy in Exhibition-making – a year-long educational and curatorial initiative launched by Vicky Do, with the participation of Le Anh Thu, Nguyen Vo Bao Han and Nhi Phan.
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