The country I decided to focus on is
Vietnam. And, since one of my favorite hobbies is eating, I wanted to
investigate its colonial history from sort of a culinary perspective,
specifically through the representation of bánh mì. Saigon-style bánh mì is arguably one the most popular
modern-day Vietnamese dishes in the United States, and it stems from the French
colonial period when baguettes were introduced to Vietnam. According to an
article in the New York Times, the first bánh mì followed “the
traditional, minimal Parisian sandwich” and consisted of simply the baguette,
butter, and pâté or ham. However, the Vietnamese transformed it into what we now
recognize as bánh mì by incorporating aspects of Vietnamese cuisine, such
as adding rice flour to the baguette recipe and garnishing the sandwich filling
with pickled daikon, pickled carrots, and cilantro. So even though bánh mì
is French in origin, it is now distinctively Vietnamese, which I think is an
interesting aspect of postcolonial Vietnam to examine because it exemplifies
how French colonialism impacted Vietnamese society but has since been
revolutionized into a sort of ‘new’ identity that integrates Vietnam’s colonial
experience with its traditional culture.
For the visual part of the project, I thought about
constructing a three-dimensional figure holding an enlarged bánh mì in
one hand, indicating that the sandwich is the focus of the piece. The figure, a
blank mannequin, would be dressed in Ho Chi Minh’s trademark “faded khaki suit and rubber sandals” outfit in order to serve as a suggestion of Vietnamese
nationalism but not be a representation of Ho Chi Minh himself. As for the bánh
mì itself, the French ingredients—aka the baguette, pâté, etc.—would be made of transparent
glass while the Vietnamese ingredients would be their typical vivid colors. It would
essentially demonstrate what bánh mì would look like if French influence
had been completely purged after colonization ended, with the glass ingredients
representing that absence. Thus, when the viewers see the sandwich, I want them
to note the lasting impact that France had on Vietnam and the fact that
colonial history cannot simply be erased.
I’m concerned, though, that this message might come
across as pro-colonialism, which is definitely not my purpose. Rather, what I’m
attempting to convey is the idea that the Vietnamese took charge of their
colonial experience by using and integrating French influence instead of letting
it dominate them or trying to ignore that it happened in the first place. Another
concern of mine is the fact that pretty much none of our readings discuss the
impact of French colonialism on Vietnam’s culinary history, so most—if not
all—of my sources of information are external. Moreover, since it isn’t exactly
a popular topic as a whole, even those external sources are somewhat scarce and
a little repetitive. So I’m worried that my project might not fulfill the “historical
accuracy and comprehensiveness” criteria of evaluation.
Anyway, sorry about the long post, but I would really
appreciate any comments, criticisms, or feedback in general!
(My ‘backup’ idea, in case people think the original
proposal doesn’t accurately convey what I want it to convey, is to construct an
interactive model of a bánh mì wherein
the French ingredients are opaque and the Vietnamese ingredients are made of glass.
When the viewer presses a button or pulls a lever or something, the glass would
fill up with appropriately-colored sand, thereby making the Vietnamese
ingredients solid as well. In this model, the emphasis would be more on how the
Vietnamese essentially overhauled the original French bánh mì and developed
it into something greater by adding aspects their own culture, which hopefully better
expresses the message that they ‘took charge’ of their colonial experience.)
Hi, Jennifer--thanks for being the first to post! I like your idea a lot, and not just because I'm a big fan of banh mi. :) Your thinking about and use of the food as both metaphor and remnant of Vietnam's colonial history is imaginative and appropriate. My immediate thought is that the visual component sounds both literal and contrived with the representation of the human and the food and their respective symbolism. Perhaps one way to mitigate the literalness (and avoid difficult symbolism) is to embrace it. I was actually thinking that your idea may lend itself well to performance. An artist who comes to mind is Thai artist Rirkrit Tiravanija, famous for creating a gallery event where he cooked Thai food for the gallery visitors (http://nymag.com/arts/art/reviews/31511/). By incorporating a live human and actual food preparation, you might more directly address your position to colonialism and, hence, not appear "pro-colonialism."
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your research on the subject and look forward to seeing what you come up with. Again, very imaginative and interesting take on the subject, lots of potential!
Look forward to other people's comments as well.
Forgot to mention: the idea that the project may not convey the range of ideas you want ("historical accuracy and comprehensiveness") is something all artists grapple with when they have something they really want to say. Just think through all the elements that you consider crucial and see how you might integrate them into the piece. Where you feel you might fall short, you can always address in your writing. It's not a luxury artists always have, but you have it here. :)
ReplyDeleteI think it's great that you chose such a specific dish to focus on. The colonization of Asia can seem like such a large topic, and I think centering your project on bahn mi was a great way to make your message simple, clean, and clear.
ReplyDeleteThe use of glass to represent France's lasting presence is great. Because while bahn mi is distinctively Vietnamese,which you demonstrate by having the Vietnamese ingredients in vivid colors, I think the viewer will then see the French ingredients in glass. I think viewers would see it second, kind of like an after thought of how France influenced the nation. I think you should stick to your original plan.
Your project so far seems excellent--well-researched and constructed.
Thanks to both of you for your comments! Since I’m a strong supporter of eating, I immediately loved the idea of food as performance art, so for my new idea I was thinking of setting up a sort of “street stall café.”
ReplyDeleteRather than simply focusing on bánh mì, however, I think this installation would have a stronger impact by serving a meal set consisting of bánh mì, pho, and Vietnamese iced coffee, which would essentially be a play on the classic soup, sandwich, and coffee menu of a Parisian café. I specifically chose those three dishes because they are all examples of French cuisine being adapted to fit the Vietnamese culinary scene. Bánh mì and Vietnamese iced coffee are pretty self-explanatory at this point, but pho is probably a dish that most people would not think of as being French-influenced. After doing some research, though, there are apparently some arguments that pho stems from the French dish pot-au-feu (http://www.lovingpho.com/pho-opinion-editorial/history-and-evolution-of-vietnamese-pho/), which I found really interesting.
Anyway, as for the set-up of the installation itself, I definitely imagine an actual cart or stall with a humble seating area in front; ideally, from the seating area, visitors would be able to observe other visitors wandering around the gallery and passing by, which would emulate the energy of a bustling street. Behind the stall would be jars of pickled daikon and carrots, which would not only be aesthetically vivid but also function as a reminder of the traditional Vietnamese culinary aspects of the meal. I also think it’d be interesting to bake baguettes on-site since the smell of fresh bread is such an enticing aroma for most people; moreover, it would give visitors the opportunity to watch the baker mix wheat flour with rice flour, which would re-emphasize how the Vietnamese integrated certain aspects of French cuisine with their own.
Also, I want to keep my ‘glass baguette bánh mì model’ by incorporating it into my new idea as a tip jar, wherein visitors can drop money into the glass part and watch it fill up. Tipping isn’t as ingrained in French and Vietnamese culture as it is in America, so the tip jar would stand out as an oddity -- essentially, it would generate a “distancing effect” or “alienation effect,” which is what I am aiming for. For those unfamiliar with the concept, it is usually used in reference to traditional performing arts (aka stage theatre), and it basically means reminding the audience at certain points during the play that they are, in fact, witnessing a work of fiction. The bánh mì tip jar, then, would remind visitors that the street stall isn’t just a randomly-placed eatery in the middle of a gallery—it is an installation piece (with edible benefits).
Hope you guys like this updated idea! I definitely think it's a step up from my original plan, which I felt was a little too heavy-handed with the Ho Chi Minh imagery, but I wasn't quite ready to let go of my 'glass baguette bánh mì' model idea, haha. Feedback would be much appreciated! :)
I think what I like most about your idea is choosing to portray the Vietnamese part of the bán mì as vivid, favoring more towards realism; where the french side is made of glass. To me, that glass would seem to denote something that is sharp and potentially dangerous. You can't have that bán mì without the influence of the French. But even still, that influence is a reminder of the intrusiveness and displacement caused by colonization. It's like "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade"; only "when the french invade and colonize you, make bánh mì" so to speak. I also like how you found a gateway history lesson in something as obscure as a sandwich.
ReplyDelete