Yen Linh Thai: Mother Tongue
CURATOR: Jasmine Mander
Mother Tongue by muralist and illustrator Yen Linh Thai explores the widening gap of lost cultural knowledge between generations. Thai’s family were among the first farmers on an island in the Mekong Delta, in Vietnam. They worked to develop the land from rice paddies to grow regional fruits such as guava, jackfruit, and dragon fruit. As food is an integral part of her family’s history, she uses provisions such as pineapple eyes, coconuts, and fermented crab to relay important cultural teachings and knowledge.
Thai’s experience of connecting to her culture through language, values and traditions has been one of exploration and play, yet there is an underlying fear that bubbles to the surface. This feeling of anxiety is reinforced with each passing family member and the realisation of an ever-widening cultural gap. She illustrates the sinking feeling of knowing that we simply cannot absorb enough before our time here passes.
Thai’s interest in the formation of identity is reinforced by highlighting the moral life lessons embedded in Vietnamese folktales. These stories hold power – from how they’re told to who tells them. Thai retells the tales that she has heard over and over again since childhood before they are lost to the void forever.
Origin Story of the Salted Crab – Told by Charles M. Thai (Linh’s Dad)
Legend of the Pineapple – Told by Ning Trinh (Linh’s Mom)
Meet the artists
Yen Linh Thai
Yen Linh Thai is a multidisciplinary artist, muralist and illustrator based in Mississauga. Her work explores personal narratives, incorporates the whimsical and exists on the cusp between two and three dimensional. She loves to experiment and over the past few years has expanded her practice to public art projects. She has participated in several residencies, including Michael Lin’s exhibition Archipelago at Museum of Contemporary Art, Toronto. She has brought to life numerous murals, most recently for the Eglinton Way BIA, Arts Etobicoke, and Street Art Toronto. In 2021, she was awarded the MARTY (Mississauga Arts Award) in the Visual Arts – Emerging category. She holds a Bachelors of Science in Animal Biology & Studio Art from the University of Guelph. This year, she is also participating in the Art Gallery of Ontario’s Inner Space: Studio Tour Web Series.