About Cambodian Living Arts

Our History
CLA’s mission is to be a catalyst in a vibrant arts sector, inspiring new generations. Founded in 1998 by musician, genocide survivor and human rights activist Arn CHORN-POND, by 2012, CLA was supporting 27 classes across nine provinces, reaching 1,000 students and covering 12 art forms.
Having successfully revived and preserved traditions that neared extinction, we shifted our focus to build sustainability, support a new generation of young people in the arts. In this phase of our work, we started offering scholarships, fellowships and professional development training, whilst creating job opportunities. To support the transforming environment, CLA also engaged in cultural policy advocacy, supported the development of culture and arts education in public schools and built new audiences for arts.
Since 2017, we have also focused on creative expression, stimulating creativity among a new generation of artists by making small grants, running creative skills workshops and supporting the creation of new work.
After two decades, we have fully evolved our role as a grantmaker and catalyst in strengthening creativity and expression through different types of grants and commissioning new works to develop a healthy arts ecosystem.
Meet Our Team
Executive Team

YON Sokhorn
Program Director
Program Team

EN Sormanak
Learning & Development Program Manager

SOUS Sinath
Grants Manager

SONG Seng
Festival Coordinator

THORN Seyma
Community Engagement & Outreach Program Coordinator

THA Samath
Senior Program Coordinator

SAY Tola
Research Coordinator
Marketing and Fundraising

PHARY Phacdey
Marketing and Fundraising Manager

CHOEUN Socheata
LAI Graphic Design Coordinator

SUOL Nary
Communication Coordinator

THON Dika
Videographer and Editor
Operation and Finance

KUON Manith
Head of Finance

KONG Chanmanina
Senior Finance & Operation Coordinator

HOUR Phaktra
Finance Coordinator

CHHUON Vattei
Receptionist

PICH Panha
Office Assistant

SO Maly
Cleaner

SO Piseth
Security Guard
Board of Directors

Dr. Richard C. Helfer
Chair of the Board Founding Chairman and CEO, Raffles International Chairman, Creo Lifestyle International Pte Ltd _ RCH International Pte Ltd Singapore

H.E. VENG Sereyvuth
Chairman, Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia Former Minister of Culture and Minister of Tourism Phnom Penh, Cambodia

MARY K. Read
Company Director, Reads of Woollahra Sydney, Australia

Sokny ONN
Country Director, Epic Arts

Sophie Toan EK
Kravanh Restaurant, Owner
The Cambodian Living Arts’ Family
Cambodian Living Arts is an initiative of Living Arts International, a non-profit organization which believes the arts are at the heart of every vital society. Living Arts International’s other initiatives include Mekong Cultural Hub and Connecting South.
Boards of Living Arts International

Dr. Richard C. HELFER
Chair of the Board
Founding Chairman and CEO, Raffles International
Chairman, Creo Lifestyle International Pte Ltd & RCH International Pte Ltd
Singapore

Barbara BARRON
Independent Advancement Consultant
San Rafael, CA USA

John BURT
Co-Founder
President, John Burt Productions
Chair, Season of Cambodia 2013
New York, NY USA

Rachel COOPER
Director, Global Performing Arts and Special Cultural Initiatives, Asia Society
New York, NY USA

Sarah GARDNER
Freelance Consultant
Founding Executive Director, International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (IFACCA)
Sydney, Australia

Melissa IM
Advisor, The Juhi Center
San Francisco, CA USA

Carolyn MALCOLM
Partner, NKSFB, LLC
New York, NY USA

Nico DASWANI
Head of Arts and Culture, World Economic Forum
Geneva, Switzerland

Philippe PEYCAM
Director, International Institute for Asian Studies
Leiden, The Netherlands

Dr. Venka PURUSHOTHAMAN
Chair, Advisory Council
Deputy President and Provost, LASALLE College of the Arts
Singapore

Mary K. READ
Company Director, Reads of Woollahra
Sydney, Australia

H.E. Veng SEREYVUTH
Chairman, Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia
Former Minister of Culture and Minister of Tourism
Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Eric WONG
Treasurer
New York, NY USA

Connie BAHER
President, U.S. Business Communications, USA

Carol BECKER
Dean of Faculty, Columbia University School of the Arts, USA

Marjorie CHU
Curator, gallery owner, author and lecturer, Singapore

Joyce CLARK
Board Chair, Heritage Watch International, USA

Marie LE SOURD
Secretary General, On the Move, Belgium

Rithy PANH
Founder, Bophana Audiovisual Resource Center, Cambodia

Cynthia SCHNEIDER
Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy, Georgetown University, USA

Clare SHINE
Vice President & Chief Program Officer, Salzburg Global Seminar, Austria

Mike VAN GRAAN
Executive Director, African Arts Institute, South Africa

Anmol VELLANI
Founder, India Foundation for the Arts, India

Katelijn VERSTRAETE
Director Arts and Creative Industries East Asia, British Council, Singapore
Cambodian Living Arts’ Masters
Cambodian Living Arts began with the Cambodian Master Performers Program. We were working with some surviving masters in around 7 cities and provinces of Cambodia at the time to ensure that their knowledge was passed on to new generations within their communities so that it was no longer endangered.

MAN Men
Retired Classical wedding Music Master

NORNG Chak
Retired Bassac Opera Master

SUON San
Retired Chapei Teacher (1950-2017)

YEOUN Mik
Retired Modern Wedding Music Master

TEP Mary
Retired Pinpeat Master (1933-2021)

SOK Duch
Retired Classical Wedding Music Master (1926-2017)

KHY Mom
Retired Yike Master

KONG Nai
Retired Chapei Master

IEANG Sithul
Retired Classical & Folk Dance Master

LING Srey
Retired Kontoamming Master (1926-2014)

NHUCH Hoeun
Memm Master in Ratanakiri

SENG Norn Retired
Kontoamming Master