FUTURE
The Solutions For the Future ~ The Defenders
ROUN RY
Our Village, 2022 | Photograph
Tonle Sap, the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia and one of the richest inland fishing grounds in the world, is home to a community of fishermen. In the past years, their lives are increasingly under pressure, and many who depend on the lake are struggling to make a living. The lake and its ecosystem are suffering too, from a combination of factors including overfishing, alterations in annual flood cycles caused partially by the hydropower dams on the Mekong River, habitat degradation, pollution from surrounding towns and destruction of its mangroves. Water volume has fallen, leading surrounding wetlands to dry up, with fish, the main source of livelihood for the villagers, becoming harder and harder to find.
Flooded forests can store up to five times more carbon than other types of forests, making this ecosystem a crucial tool against the current climate crisis.
Roun Ry is a self-taught photographer and translator based in Siem Reap, Cambodia. His interest in the medium began when he first participated in the annual Anjali Photo Workshops in 2010, organized by the non-profit Angkor Photo Festival & Workshops. His attention is focused on documenting the life of the Tonle Sap Lake and the local indigenous Cham Community. He works as a photographer and local guide.
@rounryHOUR SEYHA
Reflection of a Village, 2019 | Digital print from an acrylic and enamel on canvas 48 x 27cm. Romcheik5 collection
Back to my ghost village, 2019 | Digital print from an acrylic and enamel on canvas 50 x 35 cm. Romcheik5 collection
Born in Oddar Meanchey (Cambodia), in 1991, Seyha graduated from Phare Ponleu Selpak Visual Arts School in 2013. He lives and works at Romcheik5 studios, Battambang, Cambodia.
WILDLIFE ALLIANCE
Photographs, 20x15cm
Since 1995, Wildlife Alliance has implemented cutting-edge conservation programs in Southeast Asia, Russia, South America and the Western Pacific, designing, implementing and supporting bold, front-line conservation programs to protect threatened rainforests, save endangered wildlife populations and directly address the causes of poverty in the tropical belt. The most notable result of this was the creation of the first wildlife law enforcement unit in Southeast Asia, the Wildlife Rapid Rescue Team, WRRT. By 2021, the department had arrested 7054 Illegal wildlife traders, seized 72.787 live wildlife and confiscated 18.5 tons of bush meat and body parts. Today, 17.478 km2 of continuous forest have been maintained in the Cardamoms, where WA delivers hands-on direct protection to 1.7 million hectares of rainforest. Among them, the Southern Cardamom REDD+ Project protects 497.000 hectares of tropical rainforest in South-West Cambodia which are globally significant for wildlife conservation, ecosystem servicing and community livelihoods, including preventing more than 3.000.000 tons of carbon emissions annually.
Photographs, 20x15cm
Lean more on the effects of the wildlife trade: a) Politics of Extinction: On the trail of Cambodia’s Kouprey
LUCKY THE ARTIST ELEPHANT
Phoenix - Uniquely. Remarkable and will continue forever
Dancing in the wild - Being free. Brings happiness. Not Careless but carefree
Lucky showcases the vivid paintings of Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Center’s friendliest animal ambassador. Introduced to art therapy as a way to cope with her early trauma, Lucky the elephant has charmed her caretakers and visitors alike with her creative and exuberant paintings, which are sold to raise funds for food and healthcare for the endangered animals at the Phnom Tamao Sanctuary, wildlife that were snared or trapped for illegal trade. Phnom Tamao Sanctuary makes these animals feel safe and helps them recover physically and mentally to healthier lives. Animals saved by the Wildlife Rapid Rescue Team (WRRT) are relocated to the Sanctuary, and each animal is assessed for release based on their health and strength to survive independently in the wild. It is currently home to over 1200 animals.
Flow - Keep on moving, everything will be fine, Nirvana is somewhere along the way
Wildlife - Surround ourselves with beauty, it is the future of humankind
SAO SREMAO
UNITING
Banh Kontel 1 | Digital illustrations on photo 80x60cm | Uniting Collection 2022
Banh Kontel 2 | Digital illustrations on photo 80x60 | Uniting Collection 2022
Humans and nature, bonded by memory. These digital illustrations explore the connection between Cambodian communities, time and our shared environment. The forest is a place of food, resources, shelter and community - a place of knowledge for survival and spiritual sustenance. These bonds are being shredded by deforestation. Illegal logging, land grabs for industrial scale farms are taking with them the memory of generations, held tight by communities entwined with their forests. Unable to sustain life at home, Cambodia’s young are migrating to cities. Memories fade with each tree hacked down – and each step taken further from their forest by Cambodia’s youth.
The Love | Digital illustrations on photo 80x60 | Uniting Collection 2022
សសៃ | Digital illustrations on photo 90x60 | Uniting Collection 2022
Mat | Digital illustrations on photo 80x60 | Uniting Collection 2022
Sao Sreymao was born in 1986, Site 2 refugee camp, Thai border and she currently bases in Phnom Penh and Battambang, Cambodia. She graduated from Phare Ponleu Selpak's School of Visual and Applied Arts, Battambang province in 2006. Her work in multidisciplinary practice includes painting, photography, digital drawing, sculpture and performance. Her works explore personal expression and memories, as well as the changing physical and psychological landscapes of Cambodian urban and rural communities. She has also collaborated with various writers in visual storytelling and published a number of graphic novels.
SAM DARO
Praying | Digital print of drawing, charcoal, on Kraft paper
This artwork displays a man praying while his face slides off, revealing his skull. People tend to pray when they are scared of something important that will impact their lives.
Planting | Digital print of drawing, charcoal, on Kraft paper
The art piece depicts hands holding a plant pot in the shape of a human face. In this green world, the plants should be taken care of by humans, not destroyed by humans.
Hunting | Digital print of drawing, charcoal, on Kraft paper
This artwork shows a man with a deer skull head impaled with a spear by what seems to be his own hands. The world is like a big house. People and animals are like friends and families. Hunting for fun should not exist.
Sam Daro is a conceptual artist and a digital artist who lives and works in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Self-taught from a young age, he began drawing as a means of dealing with personal, family problems, and later on, depression. Now, with almost 10 years of experience in art, Daro continues to explore creative and meaningful expressions through digital and traditional art, besides encouraging the next generation of young artists to do the same.