Since 1 February 2021, Myanmar has been in turmoil as the Myanmar Army, known as the Tatmadaw, detained State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint following a general election which Suu Kyi’s NLD party won by a landslide. The coup d’état led by General Min Aung Hlaing brought an end to a decade of semi-democratic rule and returned full power to the military, a state of emergency and gross human rights abuses. Courageously, the population has been resisting and demanding the release of the imprisoned leaders, as well as a booming number of prisoners and the restoration of democratic rule. A massive civil disobedience movement has emerged and hundreds of thousands continue to take to the streets in spite of the military’s use of lethal force against protesters. Amidst the failure of the international community to take action, atrocities are being committed on an increasing scale, with the opposition National Unity Government (NUG) in exile resorting to form the People Defence Force and justify armed resistance.  
 
As the anniversary of the coup on 1 February 2022 approaches, SEA Junction in collaboration with Art for Freedom (Myanmar), now known as Raise Three Fingers (RTF), and Asia Justice and Rights (AJAR) is holding a creative exhibition "Defiant Art: A Year of Resistance to the Myanmar Coup in Images" on 18-30 January 2022 in solidarity with the uprising movement in Myanmar. A series of 13 boards with text illustrated by artworks by artists from Myanmar and beyond, commemorating and contesting the key events in the course of the year, will be displayed on the curved wall on the 4th floor of the Bangkok Art and Culture Center (BACC). Together, the boards form a history in images of the evolving political situation in Myanmar—economic and social impacts have also been huge, but are not the focus of the exhibition—highlighting the importance of art to raise awareness, chronicle what is happening and encourage resistance.

For more information, please contact
Lattapol Jirapathomsakul
Mobile: 097-002-4140
Website: http://seajunction.org/