Khmer Rouge Museum
Exhibition #01: The Exodus
Software: Rhinoceros 3D / V-Ray / Photoshop
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
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This is the first exhibition in a series of three for a museum concept titled Khmer Rouge: A Journey Through Tragedy, A Search for Hope which follows the rise and fall of communism in Cambodia in the 1970’s.
In the four years that the Khmer Rouge communist party ruled Cambodia, it was responsible for one of the worst mass killings of the 20th Century. French for “Red Cambodians”, the party was formed in 1968 but didn’t become prominent until 1975. Through execution, starvation, disease, and forced labor, the Khmer Rouge systematically killed an estimated two million Cambodians, almost a fourth of the country’s population at the time. Today, the period is often referred to as “The Killing Fields”.
THE EXODUS: YEAR 1975
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The Khmer Rouge regime sought to destroy all signs of modern civilization and return to an agrarian society. They first occupied the capital of Phnom Penh and then swiftly forced millions out of the city to work on communal farms in the countryside.
They exacted compliance by lying to the civilians that the United States was going to bomb the city, and that everyone would be allowed to return three days later after it was deemed safe. However, this was an outright lie and it would be years before families were able to come back again to their homes.
DESIGN
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Sheer fabric hangs along curved tracks from a lofty ceiling. Printed upon the fabric itself are historical images of the Cambodians leaving the city in a forced evacuation. The translucent images layer upon one another, creating the fullness of a crowd. As the audience wind their way through the space, their own form interacts with the thin fabric, increasing the density of the crowd and giving it motion. Printed image and motion blur together, creating the sense of a large crowd trudging their way out of the city.
Abandoned residences and boarded up shops line the perimeter, watching quietly as the ghostly progression of people trudge their way out of the city. Droning voices echo through the space warning of the American’s bomb threat. In the center is an illuminated display case of the items hastily grabbed by the Cambodian people before leaving their homes. These include a family’s 3 day supply of rice, pots and pans, small amounts of cash, baskets and blankets for making camp, and valuables such as jewelry.
