Teachings From a Self-Segmenter, Jade Yumang

 

Buddy is thrilled to present Teachings From a Self-Segmenter, a solo presentation of Jade Yumang at Buddy’s Randolph street window space at the Chicago Cultural Center. This new series subverts and reclaims the viscera sucker, a monster from Philippine folklore known as the manananggal in Tagalog. Traditionally, the viscera sucker is depicted as a beautiful woman by day, who transforms into a monster at night. This creature is characterized by self-segmenting her body, with her legs remaining firmly rooted to the ground while her torso unfurls bat-like wings to prey on pregnant women. This horrific transformation stems from the Philippines' colonial past, when powerful animist shamans—primarily women and effeminate men—were seen as threats by colonizers. Historically, these shamans were some of the most passionate protesters against foreign invaders, leading to the villainization of femininity through the image of the viscera sucker as a failed feminine figure.

As a child, Yumang was filled with fear after hearing stories of the manananggal as a vengeful monster, with a long, sharp tongue potentially lurking outside his bedroom. However, Yumang now views these monsters as reflections of his relationship with gender as a queer person, celebrating them rather than shying away. Yumang sees the viscera sucker as a symbol of resilience against dominant forces, free from constraints and proudly displaying colorful, embellished wings. His focus is particularly on isolating the wings from the body to reimagine the manananggal as a representation for anyone who has been suppressed in their self-expression and disconnected from the dominant paradigm. Yumang fantasizes that these viscera suckers originate from the Filipino diaspora migrating to North America, grappling with the challenges of fitting in while adding to the complexity of North American identity.

Yumang utilizes knitting to create the membranes of the wings, embodying a process that can be undone and remade, always harboring the possibility of change and renewal on the horizon. Yumang envisions the viscera sucker as possessing complex versions of the self, rather than conforming to a singular identity. The wings can serve as a taunt or act as a protective embrace. This anachronistic retelling of folkloric history reshapes a queer discontent in the present moment.

Artist Bio:
Jade Yumang was born in Quezon City, Philippines, grew up in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, immigrated to unceded Coast Salish territories, including the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and has been living in the traditional unceded homelands of the Council of the Three Fires, the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi Nations, in Chicago, IL, USA. They have exhibited their work in several museums and galleries nationally and internationally, including The Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art (New York, NY), Brooklyn Museum (NY), John Michael Kohler Arts Center (Sheboygan, WI), Museum of Arts and Design (New York, NY), Craft Contemporary (Los Angeles, CA), Art-in-Buildings (New York, NY) to name a few. Jade has received grants from the Illinois Arts Council, the Canada Council for the Arts, and the BC Arts Council. He has been an artist-in-residence at the Atlantic Center for the Arts (New Smyrna Beach, FL), Fire Island Artist Residency (NY), Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Swing Space Residency (New York, NY), and Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts (Omaha, NE). They earned an MFA with Departmental Honors from Parsons School of Design in 2012 and a BFA with Honors from the University of British Columbia in 2008. Jade is an Associate Professor in the Department of Fiber and Material Studies at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Jade Yumang's Website &  Instagram