A multimedia exhibition, featuring video interviews, found and appropriated footage, photographs, a map, a cooking workshop, and a recipe that were shared along side food, and live music performances. OCEANS / GOLDEN TEARDROP (THONG YOD) uses personal histories and collective memories on a journey from the past to the present in cultural exchanges. What are the relationships between Thong Yod, Bomba and the Hunts Point neighborhood? The collaboration between Bronx based artist Hatuey Ramos-Fermín and Thai artist Arin Rungjang articulates the metaphorical and historic bridges between sugar, colonization, and local resistance. Thong Yod is a dessert made of eggs and sugar that originated in Portugal and introduced 350 years ago to Thailand, where it was adopted and transformed by local traditions. This dessert is made for special occasions and social gatherings such as weddings.
Bomba music originated when West African slaves were brought to Puerto Rico to work on sugarcane plantations. They used music, dance and singing to show pride, celebrate religious ceremonies, and to organize politically, as well as spreading local events through “newspaper songs”.
Videos by Arin Rungjang and Hatuey Ramos-Fermín
This work is sponsored by CEC ArtsLink and hosted by THE POINT CDC.Oceans/Golden Teardrop(Thong Yod) continues One Big City, a series of collaborative artistic events produced by CEC ArtsLink in partnership with leading cultural institutions to engage New York’s diaspora communities through international arts initiatives.
Photo documentation by Elizabeth Hamby, Daniel Gallegos, Hatuey Ramos-Fermín
Hatuey Ramos Fermín 