Artist in Residence at Ne' Na Contemporary Art Space, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Shardul Kadam with ANA A.RIBALAYGUA

Artist Statement:

Suspended Impressions

During my stay at Ne'na residency program in Thailand, I got the opportunity to study the characteristics of ‘Lanna’ culture of northern Thailand. I travelled to Cambodia to visit the great ancient kingdom of ‘Khmer’ and witness it's  great art, which was nearly contemporary to ‘Lanna’. I was very fascinated by the Lanna Rituals like wedding, their beautiful costumes and the architecture. 

After observing the Thai life I found many interesting elements for my works. The mythological characters in the murals from ‘Khmer’, ‘Wat Phra Kaeo’, many temples including ‘Silver Temple’ and public buildings in Chiang Mai enriched my visual language with the decoration, simplification, characterization of the human and natural forms. It also reflected through the compositional prototype in my works. I observed the sociopolitical views and the modern way of living of Thai people. I found many interesting patterns and forms like local traditional artifacts, daily household objects, architectural patterns which I included in my  creations.  I came across the local Thai food market where they sold the meat of the dead animals and the red light areas where the alive human beings were rented.

My work is the impression of  all these elements in Thai society which is adopting to the modern way of life while conserving their rich traditions. I found this very similar to the Indian way of life. I have tried to express my observations in  comparison to Indian life. In a few places it is quite narrative with a linear drawing. Some works are more outgoing with  spontaneous expression, with massive visual distortions, I think it is the reflection of the lifelong culture and transiting contemporary which contradict and compliment each other. The works also include the use of Thai alphabets and symbols from the various objects. I have tried to combine the decorative forms and the simplified forms of objects and human figures. It takes form many a times in a cubist way. These works created during my stay at Ne-na contemporary art space reflect my personal interpretation of the transition of Thai culture and society from ancient to contemporary.

Shardul Kadam

31 October 2015

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Display of works during Residency- Invitation