—

What Once Was

Edition of 3

Printed in Malaysia

May to June 2017

https://rimbundahan.org/jel-suarez/

notes from the zine:

Cutting through the images for this zine has been a self-exploration of some sort. Rimbun Dahan was constructed in 1990, the same year I was born. I am, I guess, as old as the trees, the roofing, frames, planks, and beams that make up this place. An affinity to these things grew in me as I worked on this project. 

What Once Was is a fictional archive of an archive – an attempt to trace down Rimbun Dahan's origin by dissecting the details of its construction. It features physical elements from sites which may still be present or already gone.  By altering a photograph, a shift in its perception is made. Some are scenes frozen in time, rendered in an effort to restructure what has been captured. Some of the produced images appear as fade-out recollections, perhaps a portrayal of sights and things that are now foreign to our awareness.   

No one is capable of making a definitive record of what once was. Yet, it is through the eyes of the present that one can catch a glimpse of the past. The act of remembrance is man’s strength.  What Once Was is a gesture of it.

—

Rimbun Dahan is a sanctuary, a shelter rich of dreams, ideas, and potential. I hope guests and artists who will find their hands on this copy, also take the opportunity to transcend time and space through the phantoms living inside these images.

To Angela, Hijjas, Citra, Thoriq, Zul, Steve, Syar, Haffendi, Veronika,  Santan (and the pack) Jesmi, Lubis, Ayu, Putih, Ain, Ling, Moo, and all the lovely people I met here in Malaysia. 

- J.S.

(archive courtesy of Angela Hijjas and Syar Alia)

Tarjeta Postal | Maitum Jars

Collage

Old Mill Matte Paper

Printed in Manila

May 2015

This series was part of a mini-exhibition under Manila Postcard Project at The Hub Escolta.

"Anthropomorphic jars (c.5 BC- AD 225) were discovered in 1991 at the Ayub cave, Maitum Sarangani Province, Mindanao. They formed part of a larger collection of pottery vessels, the likes of which had not been seen before in prehistoric Southeast Asia. The jars were colored with red paint made from hematite, a local mineral. These burial jars contain the remains of the dead, usually consisting of small bones and teeth. They reflect the care and concern to which people went to care for their deceasd. No Maitum jar is identical to another. Each has its own distinctive features, which may reflect the individuality of the people associated with them. Most of these are now in the possession and care of the National Museum."