TA(A)M PRAPHENI: EXPLORING THE LIMITS OF TRADITIONAL THAI PAINTING

Abstract

Thai Art is often categorised into two broad categories, Traditional Thai Art and Modern Thai Art, and within each category, the different styles are labelled according to the reigns and kingdoms of Thailand. In my study of Thai Painting in NUS, I was taught to identify Thai Murals by taking note of the unique characteristics of Thai Painting in each reign. In this thesis, I challenge this idea of looking at Thai Painting in such a unilinear fashion. Through speaking to people in the Thai Painting field in Bangkok, Thailand, I understand what the term “prapheni” means in Thai Painting. With that, I suggest new ways of determining what Traditional Thai Painting means, by looking at composition, colour, and content. These ideas will be reflected in my artwork, which should be considered alongside this thesis.