Bo Kyar Thanat

Moe Satt is interested in the language of signs and hand gestures have shaped his performance art, as he explores notions of identity, history, and power. 

In the video Bo/Kyar/Thanat (Captain/Tiger/Gun), (2018), Satt references a Burmese game of hand gestures played by young children, similar to rock, paper, scissors. In its child-like simplicity, the game pits the three characters against each other, each one embodying power in their respective human, animal, and object worlds. The work presents Satt dressed in military uniform, his face hidden under a tiger mask and brandishing a toy gun. Striding outside the destroyed building where the Burmese Constitution was signed, his figure exudes a threatening air which is softened only by the hand gestures of play. It alludes to the continued power of the military in Myanmar, despite the democratic reforms that were introduced in 2010. The work gains even more significance in light of the violent coup that returned the military junta back to power in 2021, leading to the deaths of thousands and the arrest of democratically elected officials, artists, and activists.