Aspara Warrior - Peace in Cambodia

I recently took a trip to the University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) in Ann Arbor, MI. There are many wonderful works there, but I found the art in the Modern and Contemporary Collection most intriguing. Curated by Jacob Proctor, there is a mixture between incredibly conceptual works, abstract, surreal, political, and other such movements. While moving through this collection of UMMA, I came across a six foot sculpture located in a corner that I found incredibly interesting.

Vichet's creation, Aspara Warrior (2004), intrigues me in several ways. Upon first glace, I recognized the piece as a human figure standing upon a mound. As I moved in closer, I took notice of the texture in the metal that the sculpture was made of. Involving myself further with this piece, I came to realize the metal that made up the Aspara Warrior was, in fact, many several gun pieces. I had to find out what the significance of the guns were when I realized what the metal really was.

As I read the statement attached with Aspara Warrior, I understood it in a whole different light. Before reading the narrative, I saw this work as a political statement against gun violence or warfare. As I am a proponent for responsible use of guns, I tried to look at it in a different light than what I thought it was creating a proclamation against. There must have been a multilevel meaning behind it.


The artist statement explains that Aspara Warrior was created in response by a Cambodian student,Ouk Chim Vichet from the Royal University of Fine Arts, to raise awareness of the need for non-violence in society. I have conflicting ideas on violence, where I see baring arms as a good right to have when placed in the right hands but am strongly against hate, especially for things that are out of people's hands. I am not familiar with the conflicts within Cambodia, but from what I gathered, it seems that there is anger and hate between the Cambodian people. Because I do not know the history or facts of Cambodian violence, I will not delve into this topic at this moment.

An Aspara is a heavenly dancer who entertains the Thai gods. They are understood to be peaceful beings, which brings irony to the Aspara Warrior. The Aspara Vichet created is made up of remnants of several detonated AK-47s, an item that can be used to bring much harm to those it is used against. What Vichet's piece speaks to me is that there is discord between the history of Cambodian beliefs and what is happening between it's people these days. Perhaps Vichet is trying to understand the culture with two belief systems surrounding the Cambodian culture, or world in general. So many promote peace while many others fight in conflict. Who is right? Is each side not just standing up for what they believe in, but in different modes?

The sculpture itself is very compelling to me. I applaud Vichet on the ability to create an interesting, subtly beautiful sculpture out of material that is seen as ugly and painful to so many. The firearms seem to be disassembled to make up the body, headdress, and ground the Aspara stands upon. The being is holding an object with both hands. Though it is abstract and one can only guess at what the object is supposed to be, judging from the concept behind the work, I could see the object representing the actual guns (or violence) Vichet is standing against. I understand it from this view because the Aspara seems to be breaking the object, signifying an end to violence in society.