Thai artist Vichit Nongnual presents a series of works made in homage of a leading figure of Thai modern art during "The Grandmaster: After Tang Chang", which is running at La Lanta Fine Art until Feb 26.
Captivated by the creations of Chang since his early student days and throughout his professional career, Vichit's admiration and faith have only grown over time, culminating in an exhibition that embodies a three-part dialogue with the master artist.
For the first approach, he imitated Chang's work from memory, having studied the markings of the original pieces, working process, practices and various types of paint and materials used based on oral accounts from Chang's direct descendants. The resulting pieces capture Chang's emotions, feelings and spirit, almost as if having brought him back to life to create the new pieces.
For the second approach, Vichit reinterprets Cutting The Poet's Hand, Gouge Out The Painter's Eye (1973), one of Chang's most famous pieces, by weaving wool, a natural fabric, to express his vision where he was unable to imitate it accurately. He employs similar techniques to recreate photos of Chang and his family. In the former, viewers can sense Chang's strong determination to protest against the violation and suppression of people's freedom of expression; in the latter, the softness of wool fibres convey bonds of love and support that transcend generations.
The third approach involves the creation of three-dimensional sculptures that embody the physical traits of Chang and his family members, using wool weaving and Japanese-inspired ceramic techniques to reflect Chang's Eastern influences.
Vichit is famous among collectors, gallery owners and art enthusiasts in Europe and the US. His sculptures are presented at prestigious art fairs worldwide and he has solo exhibitions in Vietnam, Cambodia, China, Germany and the US.
La Lanta Fine Art is located at N22 Art Warehouse, Narathiwat Ratchanakarin 22, and opens Tuesday to Saturday from 10am to 7pm.
Visit lalanta.com.