James Concannon + Cuntagious Take Down Bangkok
- James Concannon
- Dec 23, 2015
- 4 min read
My path to Bangkok started a month prior on a small island in the south of Thailand called Koh Chang. Paz De La Huerta / a failed movie / mystery blue pills / chasing cock fights / and the illustrious Katoey culture eventually blasted me from that island and into the throngs of city life. Alone, foreign, and with no electricity, I initially took in the city on foot getting weird with it. 48 hours later I got the internet and at times like this, thank god for Facebook! Somehow I was immediately connected to all the “cool kids” of Bangkok and knew of the daily fun happenings.
One of the first people I contacted was this beautiful young artist named Miriam Alegria aka Cuntagious. To me she was this perfect entity depicting the sexual progression in South East Asia. In the month prior I had been slightly obsessed documenting and studying what I viewed as the duality of sexual progression / oppression in Thailand. Katoey, or direct translation Lady Boy, are often held in high esteem in Thai culture, differing highly from our westernized recent acceptance of trans life. However, the society is also based largely off of the international sex trade and is super oppressive at points, not like the empowered sex workers flowing through the westernized queer scene. Then there is Miriam, and all the young kids like her, that are self identifying now as just queer. The western concept of “Queer” is now being adapted into thai culture and it is so fascinating. I had to interview Miriam.
We sat down and talked for about an hour. I walked into the room ready to be totally blown away by our differences growing up. Miriam, a pre-op Malaysian trans girl from a small island and me, a white cis male from a small town in Connecticut. What more could be different? At the end I realized we hold so many common thoughts of self and views on the world. Holy shit, the commonality of growing up weird! That interview didn’t work too well because we had so much fun agreeing. So then she answered some questions over email instead:
Where did you grow up?
- Tawau, to be exact. A small town in sabah that lies on the south-eastern coast of Borneo in Malaysia.
Why did you move to Bangkok?
- When I first decided to move to bangkok, I got so many question from people around asking why Thailand. They assumed it's the place for me since I'm a trans so I can be free and all that. Some of them even questioned if I was going for the sex reassignment surgery, but honestly I'd be 100% free and myself everywhere I go. I don't care where i am. I moved because I needed to go out and see the world. I don't wanna be like one of those people from my home town who thinks that they know a lot, but in fact they don't know shit about what’s going on coz of the fact they grew up in that small town. We really didn't have much around and we don't really know shit, especially the kids my age that were born in the 90's. We didn't really grow up with internet and all the social media that kids have these day. Bangkok is the place I can only afford for now, but I’m glad I moved here, Bangkok is something else. When you met the right peeps in the scene and be able to be in it, there's a side of Bangkok that most tourist & traveller don't get to experience.
What term would you use to describe your sexuality?
- I used to define myself so clearly to people just so they know I'm a straight pre-op transgender and all that shits. But then I realized, why should I try so hard to explain myself to people? Fuck the norm. Nowadays i'll just be like I'm queer and I like dudes, take it or leave it.
Do you have a gender you normally attract?
- Yes I like dude, I like dicks.
Katoey culture/ Are you apart of this? Empowering?
- I'm not sure If I am apart of it nor that I want to be, From what i see (maybe I don't see much yet) Thailand has it's famous celebrities katoey on tv and all that. Somehow, yeah, it's quite empowering that seeing all these katoey on tv, making money and all that but again I'm all about individuality they are all the same (plastic surgery, model figure, very feminine - boring). Let alone the prostitutes. I don't even wanna be in the same place with them. I'm not judging or anything I'm just against prostitution. Wait yeah I am judging, I mean because of the majority of katoey prostitute people assumed all the trans are cheap, easy and slutty. (Yes people are more understanding and educated these days but being a trans myself I have met countless people who still think you're easy, slutty and all that. Just coz you're a trans they are surprise when you actually have your own individuality and character and that's sad.) Then again they're just basics. And of course they're also cool katoey with amazing individuality and I'm happy I have a couple friends like them. But if you are asking me if I'm in the queer culture, hell yeah I am, I have many friends who are trying to expanding and pushing boundaries of queer scene here and I'm so happy to be apart of them. Also the lesbian community.
What is your preferred art pratice?
- I try to explore what I can do but so far I do mostly graphic design, photography , painting, even djing and so on. To me it's so fulfilling when you be able to express yourself by exploring new things that you never know you can do before so yeah I'm self-though. Some with helps from friends.
Being artists. We took pics. Please enjoy them above.
Comments