Whitestone Gallery Taipei is delighted to present Alternate Reality: Southeast Asian Exhibition. Originally presented at New Art Museum Singapore in December 2024, the exhibition was curated by Thailand-based independent curator Nim NIYOMSIN. For this presentation, the exhibition features selected works by five artists from Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

CHEN SAI Hua Kuan (b.1976, Singapore) re-constructs ordinary situations to open up a new perspective using the atypical sense of sound. Creating installations which go beyond making and studio practices, he focuses on the human experience to give a refreshing method to interact with art. SAI has received numerous residencies and awards, including the Artist-in-Residency Award, Yale-NUS College (Singapore, 2020); the Artist-in-Residency Award, Künstlerhaus Bethanien (Germany, 2015–2016); the Artist-in-Residency Award, Fukuoka Asian Art Museum (Japan, 2013); and the Best of Artwork, He Xiangning Art Museum (China, 2013) . His works are in the collections of private collectors and art institutions, including the Singapore Art Museum, He Xiangning Art Museum (China), and Museum of Contemporary Art Busan (South Korea).

Imhathai SUWATTHANASILP (b. 1981, Bangkok, Thailand) is renowned for her use of human hair as an artistic language. Her practice addresses themes of existentialism, gender equality, spirituality and belief systems, and the human condition, exploring in particular the relationship between identity and the environment. Imhathai’s works have been presented in numerous international exhibitions, including the 15th Gwangju Biennale, Asian Pavilion: Thailand Pavilion (South Korea, 2024); the Biennale of Sydney (Australia, 2022); Bangkok Art Biennale (Thailand, 2018); Busan Biennale (South Korea, 2010); and the International Incheon Women Artists Biennale (South Korea, 2009). Her works are held in the collections of the Singapore Art Museum; the Public Art Collection, Cultural Affairs Administration, Gothenburg, Sweden; the MAIIAM Contemporary Art Museum, Chiang Mai, Thailand; and the Office of Contemporary Art and Culture, Ministry of Culture, Bangkok, Thailand, among others.

The scenes and themes in the works of LE Quy Tong (b. 1977, Hanoi, Vietnam) often originate from social media. By extracting the original context of images, he appropriates and reorganizes them, frequently reworking them around the concepts of collective memory and trauma to create new narratives that transcend time and space. His works have been presented in People, Victory, and Life after the War, an exhibition featuring works from the Nguyen Art Foundation’s collection (2021); The Picture Will Still Existfrom the Post Vidai Collection (2017); as well as at institutions including the Vietnam National Museum of Fine Arts and the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts. His works are in the collection of the Post Vidai Collection (Vietnam) and the Bodnár Art Collection (Hungary).

Maharani MANCANAGARA (b.1990, Bandung, Indonesia) reconstructs the untold stories of her grandfather during Indonesia’s political turmoil through her works. She transforms these narratives into installations that include charcoal drawings on wood panels and display cases filled with enigmatic objects. Maharani participated in the 15th Sharjah Biennial (2023);Geopoetics: Changing Nature of Threatened Worldsat the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (Taichung, 2023); and Letter – Callus – Post Warat the Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts (Taipei, 2019). Her work is in the collection of the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (Australia). In 2015, she was a finalist for both the Gudang Garam Indonesia Art Award and the Bandung Contemporary Art Award #4. In 2013, she received First Prize at the Soemardja Award, among other recognitions.

Nurrachmat WIDYASENA (b.1990, Bandung, Indonesia) explores the intersection of reality and fantasy. Through his fictional technology companyPT Besok Jaya, he satirizes how society falls far short of the promise of the space age, while simultaneously expressing hope for humanity's future. Nurrachmat has participated in exhibitions such as a group exhibition by Langgeng Art Foundation (Indonesia, 2023) andPhantom Plane, Cyberpunk in the Year of the Futureat Tai Kwun Contemporary (Hong Kong, 2019), among others. He was awarded the Winner – Young Artist Award, Art Jog MMXXI Time (to) Wonder (Indonesia, 2021).