Competitions are a great way to help artists get recognised. To that end, the well-known UOB Painting of the Year competition provides them with not only local recognition but also an opportunity to compete at the regional level among other artists from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore at the UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year.
This year's Thailand winner of the UOB Painting of the Year (POY) award in the Established Artist category, Chomrawi Suksom, who created a mixed media on canvas painting titled Dystopia, went on to win the UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year in Singapore. While receiving the prestigious award, Chomrawi burst into tears.
"When I won the POY award in Thailand, I already felt that it was unbelievable. When I won again at the UOB Southeast Asian POY in Singapore, I could not hold back my tears. I cried like a child. As a country boy who has come this far, I was so proud of myself. It was the result of my hard work and determination. I told myself that I finally did it," said the 28-year-old.
In the Emerging Artist category, 23-year-old Nawin Ponpong won the Most Promising Artist of the Year award. Nawin, who had never participated in any competition, won the award with his mixed media on wood entry titled Rural Lifestyle 1.
"I never entered a competition because I lacked confidence in my abilities. I decided to participate in UOB POY because my university lecturers and classmates encouraged me. The award made me proud of myself. And it has helped me to be more recognised in the art industry. It's the first and an important step for advancing forward," said Nawin.
Life spoke to the two winners about the ideas behind their art pieces.
Chomrawi Suksom
UOB Painting of the Year (Thailand) UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year Artwork: Dystopia
Dystopia was praised by judges for its distinctive and striking composition, intensive detail and excellent brush technique. Indeed, the painting's detail required a full year of work by Chomrawi.
"It took too much time to create only one painting. Nobody does this. I used the smallest paint brush, so it took time to paint. I had to be patient," he said.
Chomrawi is an artist interested in human behaviour and society. He came up with the idea for Dystopia when he read an article about utopia and dystopia.
"That article gave me the spark of an idea to create a painting. Utopia is an imaginary society or world where things are beautiful and peaceful. Conversely, dystopia is an undesirable society or world that is evil and terrifying. I used the concept of dystopia and developed them into visuals," said Chomrawi.
"For Dystopia, I intended to create a whole city on a canvas frame. In the city, there is a spiritual leader which was inspired by my image. Dystopia presents a city which has become excessively urbanised. I divided the city into three classes -- upper class, middle class [white collar workers] and lower class [blue collar workers]. There are people, animals, technology and other materials and objects that can be found in a city."
To communicate with international viewers, Chomrawi included different languages in his painting such as Thai, English, Chinese, Japanese and Jawi. Most messages are philosophical or beliefs related to humans.
Jawi was added because the artist's girlfriend is a Muslim and he recorded his relationship with her in Dystopia. He wrote "I love you only" in Jawi and drew a woman in a red hijab holding a flower in her hand to represent his girlfriend.
"There are some elements of utopia in the painting. It depicts love and goodwill to others. I had to record my relationship with my girlfriend in the painting because we are so different in terms of religion, lifestyle and language," he said.
One technique in Chomrawi's painting is the use of gold leaf. He noted the technique is used in Thai traditional painting and mural art.
"Gold colour gives a different feeling from other colours. It sparkles and glitters. In Dystopia, the gold leaf symbolises prosperity, greed and lust," he said.
Chomrawi spent three days in Singapore while attending the UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year Award ceremony. He said he was impressed with museums there.
"They have many excellent art pieces from Asian countries in their collections, and there are many pieces that I was surprised to see. There are collections from traditional to contemporary art and different kinds of art forms. We can see Southeast Asian art's evolution there. I wish we had this kind of museum in Thailand," said Chomrawi.
Nawin Ponpong
UOB Most Promising Artist of the Year (Thailand) Artwork: Rural Lifestyle 1
Rural Lifestyle 1 fascinated judges with its effective storytelling through the use of natural materials and its relating of the simple way of life led by coconut farmers. Rural Lifestyle 1 is an image of coconuts in and out of a basket and there are tweezers and a knife nearby. The image was created from real coconut husks, and judges praised the artist for presenting the concept of sustainability and using natural materials that otherwise would go to waste.
Nawin was inspired to use coconut husks in his art piece because he did not want to use the same technique as other competitors.
"I like painting, but it is a technique that many artists use. I want to be different. My family sells rice and curry which is made with coconut milk. We also have a coconut orchard. After the coconut flesh is removed, the coconut husks are thrown away or used as fertiliser. So I decided to use the coconut husks to create an art piece," Nawin explained.
"Each coconut husk has its own story. It has spots or bite marks made by insects, squirrels or brown marks from the heat of the Sun. Coconut husks are a good material. When they are dried, they are hard and durable. I also like their natural colour shades."
Nawin likewise attended the award ceremony in Singapore. While there, he noticed the preponderance of natural landscaping as well as art installations all over the city.
"I was impressed that trees are everywhere and art pieces are at every corner. UOB POY is an excellent competition because it introduces Thai artists to international viewers. I also met with judges, Thai and internationally established artists, who were nice to me and gave me advice. It is a beautiful beginning. I will improve my work and participate in other art competitions next year," said Nawin.
The winning paintings are on display at UOB Thailand's Phetkasem Building until Jan 31. Free admission. For more information, visit facebook.com/uob.th.
