POP-UP EXHIBITION

In ASD*ASD, Chong Yan Chuah pushes us to reexamine our bodies not as static, singular entities but as fluid, malleable mutable architectures shaped by the pervasive influence of  digital media and virtual spaces. His hypnotically unsettling visuals in his video work, unravels the nature of identity in an age where the self is fragmented and recomposed within online territories.  The human form, once seen as a concrete vessel for selfhood, now appears as a fragmented and ever-changing construct, a reflection of how digital environments permit limitless iterations of the self. In these alternate spaces, body and identity are no longer fixed; they are dynamic and continuously in flux, constantly  reimagined according to the logic of technology and digital interaction.

Chuah’s exploration of "imagined bodies" is not just an analogy; it also addresses the tangible effects of digital spaces on our perception of the body. Virtual avatars, online profiles, and digital proxies represent extensions of the physical self, becoming new terrains where identity is not just articulated but also contested. Here, Chuah questions how these restructured bodies impact our sense of authenticity, agency, and mortality. In these environments, our bodies can be dissolved, reshaped, or even reconstructed according to algorithmic logic. This malleability draws attention to a growing disjunction between our physical presence and our digital expression, questioning how selfhood is increasingly mediated by technology.

Chuah’s work interrogates the authenticity of these digital avatars, questioning the erosion of agency as our bodies are subjected to technological manipulation. What happens to our sense of agency when the body becomes a mutable, algorithm-driven entity? Does our physicality retain significance in these digital spaces, or is it a relic, outpaced by its digital counterpart? This dissolution of the body into digital forms forces us to reconsider what it means to be human in a world where physicality is increasingly irrelevant and no longer defines identity. Therefore, what remains of our authenticity when the essence of selfhood is no longer anchored in the tangible, but shaped by the intangible logic of virtual terrains?

Accompanying ASD*ASD are essays by Ana Maria Nicolaescu, Anisha Khemlani, and Bethany Jane Edgoose, whose writings explore identity, the metaverse, and mortality, deepening the understanding of the digital afterlife. Central to this, is the notion of "digital death," which highlights the persistence of online identities even as physical bodies deteriorate. In ASD*ASD, Chuah builds on these ideas, questioning how digital immortality reshapes our concepts of self and existence. Thus, the work contemplates the implications of parts of ourselves, our data, interactions, and digital creations, existing long after our physical selves are gone, suspended in virtual eternity. Through his video work, Chuah probes this new dimension of mortality, questioning whether the presence of a digital self alters our understanding of life’s impermanence. By visualizing a world where fragments of identity linger indefinitely, he addresses how digital immortality might redefine our relationship with memory, legacy, and the ephemeral aspects of the human experience.

ASD*ASD presents a future-forward examination of living in a world defined by the hybridity of the digital and physical. Chuah’s work mirrors that of contemporary life, where identities are layered, fractured, and perpetually shifting within the virtual domain. His work is less a commentary than an inquiry into our evolving self-concept: how we locate ourselves amid the ceaseless currents of digital influence, and how we reconcile our impermanent physical lives with the persistence of a digital presence. In this redefined landscape, Chuah posits that identity is no longer singular or a fixed entity but a construct continuously shaped and reshaped across dimensions both real and imagined.

𝘌𝘴𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘴*
+ Ana Maria Nicolaescu
+ Anisha Khemlani
+ Bethany Jane Edgoose

𝘎𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘤*
Somnii