The Buddhist Bug: Islam, Buddhism, and Art in Cambodia

THE DIPLOMAT
By Poppy McPherson
The Buddhist Bug at the Malay Heritage Centre in Singapore earlier this year. Image Credit: Flickr/Jnzl (surveying)
CAMBODIA---Starring the artist dressed as a giant orange insect, Anida Yoeu Ali’s multi-media installation and performance project, The Buddhist Bug, is nothing if not unique. Last week, one single print from the unusual series won its Phnom Penh-based creator the Sovereign Asia Art Prize for emerging artists. Known as “The Bug” for short, the installation features a fantastical orange creature made from a soft, flexible tube and worn by Ali in various urban and rural settings. It’s a playful exploration of displacement from the perspective of a Cambodian Muslim woman raised in the United States. [link]