Born in 1979 in Myanmar, Nge Lay received her Bachelor of Arts in painting at the University of Culture, Myanmar in 2003 and went on to do jewellery design in 2004. Her interest in photography emerged in 2007. She participated in ‘Angsana: Southeast Asian Photographers Taking Flight’ at 2902 Gallery in Singapore (2011), and ‘Magnetic Power’ at the Asian-Korea Contemporary Photography & Media Art Exhibition in Korea (2009). [see above]‘The Relevancy of Restricted Things’ references the passing of Nge Lay’s father when she was a child. Responding to her personal sense of trauma and longing from growing up fatherless, she counteracts this absence by re-enacting the performative acts of a father. In this series of photographs, Nge Lay wears a mask which metaphorically represents the missing presence of an absent father, and takes on the role of a father in a traditional Burmese family.
