Cambodian Village Life Exhibit at 1369 through Dec. 1

Features Photos by Glenn Weinreb and Amanda Nourse

By Susie Davidson

Advocate Correspondent

CAMBRIDGE - A provocative exhibit of a perennially primordial culture is on display through Dec. 1 at the 1369 Coffeehouses in Cambridge (757 Mass. Ave. and 1369 Cambridge St.). The photography of Glenn Weinreb and Amanda Nourse captures 30 scenes taken in Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand earlier this year on their two-month trip to Southeast Asia.

The shots, said Weinreb, are “primarily of Cambodia, primarily of people, primarily of children.” The two were struck by the return to the agregarian lifestyle in Cambodia, where a civil war had wracked the country’s econonic infrastructure and resulted in villagers once again living off the land. “It’s just as it was 1000 years ago,” he said. “It’s one of the few spots in the world where one can view how people lived back then.” Tourism is allowed now, and Americans can freely travel the country.

Weinreb was raised in Charlottesville VA. “My parents met at a Hillel acquaintance dance in 1955,” he said. “I thus owe my origins to Hillel.” His mother is from Newton; her father, Milton Quint, was voted Man of the Year at Temple Emanuel during the 1980s. His father's parents emigrated after World War I from Poland via Ellis Island, and lived in NY, Miami, and Atlanta.

A Cambridge resident, Weinreb studied Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, and founded two high tech companies, GW Instruments and ICC.

The trip to the region was a long-held dream. “My consciousness has been bombarded with the Vietnam War ever since I was little,” he said. “The war dominated TV for many years and had a dramatic affect on America culture, creating a huge divide between the young war generation and their folks. So the prospect of visiting Vietnam was a bit daunting.”

However, after two weeks, he realized that Vietnam and Cambodia were not simply “the war,” which was over. “The Vietnamese of today are focused on living their lives, just like Americans. They are not angry at Americans and have no desire to fight they, or anyone else for that matter. Visiting Vietnam helped morph my war-dominated association with this country into a more healthy, balanced view.”

He found Cambodia to be the most underdeveloped country he had ever visited. “It was interesting to see how folks live in a 4x4 meter hut with no door,” he said. He especially enjoyed a floating village where people live on the water all year round.

Nourse, a Brighton resident, is an office manager at a small law firm. She studied Religion and American Studies at Wellesley College and Harvard Divinity School. “You have to figure that 30 years of civil war, which ended in 1998,” she noted, “state-sponsored genocide, and the continuing danger of landmines, combined with serious poverty, can definitely influence the national mood.” But she saw hope as well. “The good news is that the kids are really sweet and friendly. I hope they will grow up in a new era, as they say, of peace and prosperity.”

In the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek, there is now a museum, with a large burial ground for those who perished under Khmer rule. “I found this spot a bit creepy,” said Weinreb. “The people seemed a bit timid and reserved, yet also seemed to yearn for a stable democracy and growing economy, much like their Asian neighbors. In summary, I think the worst is over for the Cambodians, and each year will be better than the pervious for several decades to come.”

The exhibit is sponsored by The Out of the Blue Gallery, 106 Prospect St., Cambridge. 15 percent of the proceeds are going to "On the Rise", a local support center for women. For information, please call 617-354-5287, Weinreb at 617-251-8164 or email Glenn@Weinreb.org.