Organizer: National Museum of Asian Art

Type/Location: In Person / Washington, D.C.

Image credit: National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Photo by Robert Ferreira de Araujo, in collaboration with Guimet-National Museum of Asian Arts and the National Museum of Cambodia

Description:

Join the Asian Art Museum after hours to experience the largest bronze ever cast in Southeast Asia, enriched by spotlight talks and followed by a dance performance, a short film screening, and an artist conversation. This event celebrates the exhibition Vishnu’s Cosmic Ocean.

Get exclusive insights on this monumental masterpiece of Cambodian artistry through spotlight talks by curator Emma Natalya Stein, filmmaker praCh Ly, and Professor Vasudha Narayanan. Then enjoy the dance performance choreographed by Sophiline Cheam Shapiro and inspired by the bronze Vishnu. Watch a special screening of the short film by Cambodian American director praCh Ly about the present-day community of the bronze’s original temple. And finish off the night with a conversation with the filmmaker, the choreographer, and the curator.

Schedule

• In-Gallery Spotlight Talks
  Gallery 22
  5:30–7 p.m.

• Dance Performance ផ្គុំ/PKUM
  Meyer Auditorium 
  7:30 p.m.

• Screening of Awkun
  Meyer Auditorium
  8 p.m.

• Conversation with Sophiline Cheam Shapiro and praCh Ly
  Moderated by Emma Natalya Stein
  Meyer Auditorium
  8:15 p.m.

The galleries will remain open until 7:30 p.m. so attendees can view the sculpture’s full, monumental scale.

About the Speakers:

Sophiline Cheam Shapiro is an internationally recognized choreographer, dancer, director, and educator whose work has helped shape Cambodian dance for the 21st century. Born in Phnom Penh, she was among the first generation to enroll at the School of Fine Arts following the fall of the Khmer Rouge, studying directly under surviving masters of the Royal Ballet tradition. Her commissions include those from the Guggenheim Museum’s Works & Process series, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, and Vienna’s New Crowned Hope Festival. She is the recipient of the National Heritage Fellowship, USA Knight Fellowship, and the Nikkei Asia Prize for Culture, among other honors.

praCh Ly is an award-winning writer, director, producer, and performer. Named “The First Cambodian Rap Star“ by Newsweek after his debut became the country’s first #1 rap album, his career spans music, film, and education. His lyrics are utilized globally as educational tools within academic publications and Southeast Asian Studies programs. His film credits include original music for the 2010 documentary Enemies of the People and producing In the Life of Music (2019), which served as Cambodia’s official Oscar selection.  

He is the co-founder of Cambodia Town Film Festival (CTFF) and is the first rapper in the Long Beach Symphony’s 90-year history to write, direct, and perform with the ensemble. His recent directorial works include Satook (2022) and AwKun (2026) for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art. 

Vasudha Narayanan is Distinguished Professor, Department of Religion, at the University of Florida and a past President of the American Academy of Religion (2001–2002). She was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2023. She is currently researching Hindu temples in Cambodia and the image of the reclining Vishnu in India and Southeast Asia. Her research has been supported by grants and fellowships from several organizations, including the Centre for Khmer Studies, the American Council of Learned Societies, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, the American Institute of Indian Studies, and the Social Science Research Council. 

Emma Natalya Stein is Jeffrey P. Cunard Curator of Southeast Asian Art at the National Museum of Asian Art. Her exhibitions include Vishnu’s Cosmic Ocean; Prehistoric Spirals: Earthenware from Thailand; Revealing Krishna: Journey to Cambodia’s Sacred Mountain; and The Art of Knowing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas. She is author of the monograph Constructing Kanchi: City of Infinite Temples (2021) and articles on topics including yoginis, temple networks, and cultural heritage. She currently serves on the boards of the American Council for Southern Asian Art and the journal Ars Orientalis.She regularly conducts fieldwork in South Asia and Southeast Asia, and contributes to workshops, conferences, and collaborative projects.

About the Performance:

The title of this piece, ផ្គុំ/PKUM, means “putting together“ in Khmer. It is a 30-minute lakhaon santhenea (conversation & performance) scored with both traditional and newly composed pin peat music. The choreography interprets the iconic tableau of Vishnu floating on the cosmic ocean. ផ្គុំ/PKUM explores fluidity and stillness, serpentine motion, fragmentation and reassembly, Lakshmi’s harmonizing presence, and cosmic unity as a fleeting resolution of fragments. 

The genre of lakhaon santhenea blends classical Cambodian dance vocabulary, narration, and demonstration. It illuminates theme, context, process, and intimate staging.

Choreography, Direction, and Performance by Sophiline Cheam Shapiro 
Music composition by Sophat Phatt and Dalik Sorn.  
Musicians: 

• Roneat Ek (High pitch xylophone) and Roneat Thong (Low pitch xylophone) by Sophat Satsya 

• Kong Vong Thom (Low pitch circle gong) by Narim Sampors 

• Kse Diev (One-string gourd instrument) by Sambo Meas 

• Sampho (Small double-headed Drum) and Skor Thom (Large double-headed drums) by Sophat Phatt 

• Srolay (Double-ryte oboe) and Sang (Large salt-water snail shell instrument) by Dalik Sorn 

• Costume and Sets by Sophiline Cheam Shapiro and Kakada Nim 

 Additional support for this performance comes from Nelson Hansel and Elicia Laport. 

Registration:

To attend the event in person, please register here.