Exploring the Urban Condition Through Maps in Painting
Delve into the evolving social landscape of the city of Chiang Mai over time
Chiangmai at Present (2012) by Sutikierd PumpoungArt Centre Silpakorn University
‘Chiangmai at Present’ by Suttikiet Pumpoung, one of the award-winning works from the 58th National Exhibition of Art in 2012, presents the evolving social landscape of the city of Chiang Mai over time.
The work offers a perspective contrary to the widely held image of Chiang Mai as a calm and tranquil city.
Through the use of line, colour and form filling the pictorial space, the composition appears animated and in constant movement, while the multitude of small narrative details invites viewers to observe and explore the image with curiosity and delight.
The artist adapts elements of traditional painting practice, including outlined forms and the depiction of figures upon a flattened pictorial plane without realistic spatial depth or chiaroscuro.
Primary tones of red, blue and gold are employed in association with faith and belief within Buddhism.
Sand is incorporated into yellow-brown acrylic pigments, which creates texture and visual weight within the composition. The rough traces of the sand evoke the surfaces of weathered walls or ancient paper maps shaped by the passage of time.
Chiangmai at Present (2012) by Sutikierd PumpoungArt Centre Silpakorn University
The artist presents the urban landscape from an elevated panoramic viewpoint resembling a ‘map’, a characteristic format frequently found in traditional Thai depictions of city plans.
Considered in its cartographic dimension, the work reveals significant physical features of Chiang Mai, including the city moat, city gates and important historic religious sites such as Wat Chedi Luang and the Three Kings Monument.
A continuous narrative mode is employed, interweaving scenes of daily life and places from both past and present within a single pictorial frame. This reflects Chiang Mai’s identity as a city shaped by culture, history, tourism and commerce.
The inclusion of textual inscriptions identifying various locations further clarifies the narrative structure, connecting the work to memory and lived experience, while making its meanings more accessible to viewers.
The composition may be understood as a layered record of time and history, functioning as a map that narrates the distinctive identity of Chiang Mai. At the same time, it reflects the transformation of Thai painting from the meticulous refinement of traditional conventions towards a more liberated visual language capable of conveying the contemporary context of Chiang Mai with vitality and immediacy.
Check out more arts from Thailand at Thailand Art Up Close
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