A LITTLE RICH COUNTRY ประเทศเล็กที่สมบูรณ์

In 1947 there was a rumor that Isan (Northeastern region of Thailand) was starving to death and the land was turning into a desert. A journalist from Siamrath newspaper boarded a train to see what was happening with his own eyes. His report of the region was compiled into a book titled There’s no laughter from Isan published under the pen name Nai Rum. At a time when communication came in the form of whispers that drifted from train to train, the published book served to inform people about a geographically remote situation, as well as to criticize the then government for abandoning the region.

But the most striking aspect of his book might be the cover art itself, which depicted a crying woman holding a baby. The image came from a famous low-relief sculpture that adorns a bridge in Bangkok. The sculpture was created to express the grief of the country after the passing of King Chulalongkorn in 1910.

A Little Rich Country features paintings and video works, in which Suthathongthai continues to investigate the deep-rooted problems of the Isan region through its historiography and circulation of printed matters that have influenced the image of Isan since the Cold War era. The paintings depict worn and faded book covers that once carried a specific agenda but are now obsolete. By revisiting these books, the viewer can discern whether former objectives were to promote regionalism and nationalism, or merely to inform people of events at the time.

In this exhibition Suthathongthai also works with Paisarn Am-Pim to produce a video work titled Isan chan roo khun kao jai chan roo khun kao jai Isan (2018). In contrast to Nai Rum’s There’s no laughter from Isan, one of the fragments from the video shows a sumptuous gathering of people celebrating Kathin festival by cooking an abundant amount of food, manifesting the richness of the land. The video both celebrates and scrutinizes the conventional image of Isan in the present climate.

The latter part of the exhibition is a collaboration between Suthathongthai and Dujdao Vadhanapakorn, Thailand’s only dance therapist, who examines how knowledge is produced and rendered obsolete through the use of body and sound.

Sponsored by inCube Arts