Utama – Every Name in History is I , 2003
In the film, the artist summons the spectre of Sang Nila Utama—the pre-colonial founder of Singapore who mistakenly names the city after a lion.
The film unfolds as a series of tableaux vivants in which the genealogy of Sang Nila Utama opens up to a host of subterranean connections and allegorical doublings through an unruly horde of mythical and historical characters, such as Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama, Sir Stamford Raffles, Julius Cesar, Admiral Zheng He, Alexander the Great, King Solomon, and the Greek Goddess Diana. As the actors interchangeably take on different roles, Ho questions the Great Man Theory by Thomas Carlyle, suggesting that “history… is but a biography of great men.”
Beginning with the local figure of Sang Nila Utama, the film ultimately becomes an interrogation of the notions of identity, history, and truth. The very idea of Singapore — it was not a lion but perhaps a tiger — is founded on a myth.
***
Ho Tzu Nyen (b. 1976, Singapore) is a contemporary artist and filmmaker whose works span film, video, performance, and immersive multimedia installations. His practice explores epic myths as discursive tools, examining how the past is invented to serve present needs.
He holds a BA in Creative Arts from the University of Melbourne (2001) and an MA in Southeast Asian Studies from NUS (2007).
Tze Nyen has held solo exhibitions at Mori Art Museum (Tokyo), Guggenheim Museum (Bilbao), and Yamaguchi Centre for Arts and Media. He represented Singapore at the 54th Venice Biennale (2011) and has shown at major film festivals, including Cannes (2009) and Sundance (2012).
The film unfolds as a series of tableaux vivants in which the genealogy of Sang Nila Utama opens up to a host of subterranean connections and allegorical doublings through an unruly horde of mythical and historical characters, such as Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama, Sir Stamford Raffles, Julius Cesar, Admiral Zheng He, Alexander the Great, King Solomon, and the Greek Goddess Diana. As the actors interchangeably take on different roles, Ho questions the Great Man Theory by Thomas Carlyle, suggesting that “history… is but a biography of great men.”
Beginning with the local figure of Sang Nila Utama, the film ultimately becomes an interrogation of the notions of identity, history, and truth. The very idea of Singapore — it was not a lion but perhaps a tiger — is founded on a myth.
***
Ho Tzu Nyen (b. 1976, Singapore) is a contemporary artist and filmmaker whose works span film, video, performance, and immersive multimedia installations. His practice explores epic myths as discursive tools, examining how the past is invented to serve present needs.
He holds a BA in Creative Arts from the University of Melbourne (2001) and an MA in Southeast Asian Studies from NUS (2007).
Tze Nyen has held solo exhibitions at Mori Art Museum (Tokyo), Guggenheim Museum (Bilbao), and Yamaguchi Centre for Arts and Media. He represented Singapore at the 54th Venice Biennale (2011) and has shown at major film festivals, including Cannes (2009) and Sundance (2012).
Artist:
Ho Tzu Nyen
Single-channel Video, Stereo Sound
21 min 27 sec
Ho Tzu Nyen
Single-channel Video, Stereo Sound
21 min 27 sec