Untitled (Hua Lamphong)

Thasnai Sethaseree’s massive artwork is a vibrant, tactile collage upon a canvas of layered Thai Buddhist monks’ robes, that enfolds into its surface sheets of newspapers, images of modern architecture and political violence in Thailand, as well as printed texts of the new Thai Constitution and the 17th-century poem, “Prophetic Lament for Sri Ayutthaya”. Laid over these various textures are strands of brightly-coloured Lanna paper streamers, rendered in the region’s traditional paper cutting technique and commonly seen in festivals in northern Thailand.

Underlying the celebratory hues, however, are subtle references to the socio-political turmoil that Thailand has experienced in recent years. The references to the culture of the north also suggest the broad political division between north and south. Likewise, the title of the piece points to the historic Hua Lamphong station in Bangkok, alluding to regional tensions.