A land of great beauty and heartbreak inspires an artist

BY ALEX SINNOTT

GENOCIDE, war, famine and renewed hope in a land redefining itself after the murderous regime of Pol Pot are subjects explored by artist Rachel Peters' exhibition on Cambodia.

Colours of the Khmer was inspired by Peters' three-week visit to Cambodia last year to meet up with a long-time friend, Kannikun Ouk.

Peters first met Kannikun in 1988 through her work in the charity organisation Initiatives for Change.

"When Kannikun was a child her father was killed, and he, like many others, were killed for the simple fact that they were teachers," Peters said.

As a teenager Kannikun became separated from her mother after fleeing Cambodia to a refugee camp in Thailand.

"For many years she didn't know that her mother was still alive in Cambodia until she was able to return to Phnom Penh in the mid-1980s," Peters said.

Visiting Cambodia in June 2007, Peters said her meeting with Kannikun was bittersweet as her physical condition had deteriorated after her experience as a refugee.

"It's a sad country. There's still a lot of corruption, but the Cambodian landscape is so rich and exotic and so aspects of that went into my artwork," she said.

Proceeds from the exhibition, which will run at the Allan Lane Community Gallery until August 17, will go to the Cambodia Trust.