Sights and sounds of Cambodian culture

LOWELL -- Like virtually all cities in the United States, Lowell is a place built by immigrants.

First came the English in the 1600s, then Germans, who were followed by Irish, Greeks, Portuguese, Latinos and African-Americans.

The late 1970s brought Southeast Asians, many of them Cambodian refugees chased from their country by the violent regime of Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge. They are a visible segment of Lowell today, numbering 10,000 -- just less than 10 percent of the population, according to federal census numbers, although local experts say the actual Cambodian population may be as much as three times higher.

With these numbers rising, the community's focus today is to provide a positive view of Cambodian culture. This has spawned a festival of art exhibits, movies, dance performances, drama, and cooking demonstrations, named Cambodian Expressions.

Samkhann Khoeun, one of the organizers of this monthlong festival, said Cambodians have a vibrant native culture, but of many of the country's artists -- painters, writers, and filmmakers -- were killed in the genocide carried out by the Khmer Rouge.

''Those who were targeted were the most intelligent of the population," said Khoeun, who lives in Lowell with his wife and four children.

''They were executed or starved to death. So many of the best and talented brilliant minds and hearts were lost, but so much remains. I thought that a city with as large a Cambodian population as Lowell could have something like this."

Khoeun works as a case manager and counselor for a dropout prevention program at Lowell High School, called Student Connections. The high school and Middlesex Community College are major contributors to the festival.

The festival, which opened April 2 with a ceremonial dance by the Angkor Dance Troupe at the college's Lowell campus, features an eclectic schedule that spans the cultural spectrum. April was chosen because it is the start of the Cambodian New Year.

One facet of Cambodian culture that will be highlighted is cooking. Longtein De Monteiro, chef and owner of the Elephant Walk restaurants in Boston and Somerville and Carambola in Waltham, planned to give a talk and cooking demonstration at the Lowell Community Charter School on Jackson Street.

''Cambodian cuisine and recipes are very sophisticated with influences from China, India, and France," said Monteiro. ''We use much fish but also pork, chicken, and some dishes have beef. Young Cambodians come into our restaurants and look at our menu and they say, 'What is this?' There is a large lack of knowledge in younger Cambodians because no one has taught them or made them aware."

A highlight of the festival is the gallery exhibits on display by the Lowell Cambodian Artists' Association at the Boott Mill Gallery on John Street. The space has been donated by the Lowell National Historical Park. There are paintings, drawings, photos, and sculptures by Cambodian and non-Cambodian artists, each illuminating aspects of the Cambodian experience. Lush panoramas of rural countryside, untouched by war, share space with images of life in a refugee camp with emaciated children and waste-strewn fields. The show includes work by Yary Livan and Domnang Pin, two Cambodian artists from Lowell. There also are drawings done by students from the Lowell Boys and Girls Club and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

A particularly poignant work is a series of charcoal drawings done by students enrolled in a program run through the Museum School. The exhibit, ''Real Life Real Story of a Cambodian American Family," tells the story of the difficult settlement of a Cambodian family in Revere.

Dom Nang Din, an artist who worked with the students from the Boys and Girls Club, said they were instructed to draw pictures from photographs of Cambodian sculptures and temples. He said the purpose was to introduce youths to aspects of their culture which they may never have experienced.

''Their parents lived through the trauma of the Khmer Rouge and then settled in this new country," he said. ''They don't talk to their children about how life was in their homeland and Cambodian culture, so there is a gap. Kids want to learn, but they have no way to be exposed.''

Khoeun, who lived in Chicago before coming to Lowell to work at the Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association in 1995, echoed those concerns. He said he and his extended family were forced to work in labor camps when the Khmer Rouge took over. They also spent four years in a Thailand refugee camp before coming to the United States.

While the older generation of Cambodians remember their country, their culture, and what was lost, many Cambodian youths have little of no knowledge of their heritage. This has become a source of tensions between generations within families.

''The youths have been Americanized," Khoeun said. ''They don't speak the language or know the custom that well. They don't know what the parents have suffered through and they don't have a grounding in our culture. Art and culture can become a bridge, we hope, and get families talking about our heritage."

Cambodian Expressions events are scheduled on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays until May 2. For more information call Doeun Kol at 617-669-3404.