Black Question

1953 - 2000, Thailand

Montien Boonma frequently expressed his faith in his works through the use of question marks. These marks illustrated his view of life as a perpetual cycle of questions and answers. Even its spiral shape held meaning for him, as he believed it represented movement from the exterior to the inner being, achieved through meditation and concentration. Montien preferred materials that were elemental or ephemeral to reflect the transient nature of his life. Black Question is an especially poignant work, as it was created in 1994, the year he lost his wife to cancer. He later succumbed to the same disease. During his wife's stay in hospital, the artist covered her hospital room with question marks.