The Name Dictionary
By Art Builds Community
“People with foreign names should be in the dictionary with their picture in it.”
Artist: Quynh-Mai Nguyen | Partners: Together We Create
This is a featured social practice project by Quynh-Mai Nguyen. According to Nguyen, “The Name Dictionary” is a visual commentary on micro-aggressions that she and many others with non-anglicized names have experienced in their lifetime. Experiencing micro-aggressions can leave a lasting imprint of conflicting emotions ranging from shock, anger, and confusion. We often don’t speak out on this because this subtle form of prejudice can leave one oblivious to what is happening. When we are finally able to process the situation, it is either too late to confront it in the moment or there is hesitancy to report the prejudice in fear that it would not be taken seriously.
Working with Together We Create, a collective of graffiti arts educators, Nguyen set out to open up this conversation through the creation of space and community submission of names in a dictionary format. Installed and presented at a local coffee shop, customers were able to experience the weight of this micro-aggression and see it broken down and reconstructed to honor the stories and faces behind the “foreign” names.
Nguyen collaborated with Together we Create on a backdrop installation that mimics an outside urban wall filled with aged posters, art, and tagging. The decision to work with graffiti artists to create this setting was based on Nguyen’s interest in creating a counter narrative to the stigma that is associated with graffiti and tagging. Combining the microagression with faces to this backdrop takes away the subtly and allows for viewers to process the negative weight of the phrase against the person it is imprinted on.
As the viewer gets closer to the wall, they are able to see the faces behind these “foreign” names and their name presented in a format similar to a dictionary. Their names are spelled out phonetically and are defined to a true definition, personal meaning, or short narrative.
This Name Dictionary is an on-going project of name gathering and open conversation around microagressions in order to provide a platform for those to confront it.
Visit Nguyen’s website to learn how to participate or host this conversation.