Uttaporn Nimmalaikaew wins most prestigious painting prize in Thailand

Two months before I first saw Uttaporn Nimmalaikaew's work, after tracking it down in Bangkok, Nimmalaikaew had just won the 2006 Sovereign Asia Art Prize. The next February (2007) Craig Scott Gallery presented Introducing Uttaporn Nimmalaikaew, at age 27 his first-ever solo show (actually, he may have been still 26 at the time). The work above was the centrepiece in that 2007 show: "Body (Mom) No 3," Inkjet on one layer of canvas and oil painting on two outer layers of mosquito netting, with thread superimposed, 80" high x 40" wide x 24" deep at the bottom. (Readers may wonder how it was that the Craig Scott Gallery show was Nimmalaikaew's first-ever solo show. The answer is that, to that point, a critical mass of his labour-intensive and time-consuming works did not accumulate enough for a solo show as they were constantly winning corporate art competitions -- upon which the winning pieces would then be acquired by the competition sponsor. Apart from that, he is such a perfectionist that he spent a considerable period developing his amazing process and combination of techniques before he was satisfied with the inaugural piece.)

And now word just in that Nimmalaikaew has just received the First Prize / Gold Medal in Thailand's 54th annual National Exhibition of Art in the Painting category (there is no overall category). Gold Medalists are often referred by shorthand as recipients of a National Art Prize. First Prize in any of the categories is the most coveted art award in Thailand, and Painting traditionally takes pride of place. It is open to works submitted from artists of all generations and stature, including recognized senior masters. And he is only 28. (That said, he was only 25 when he won the same Gold Medal / 'National Art Prize' in Painting in the 51st annual National Exhibition of Art.)

The winning work, Mom's Chair 180x200x160 cm (see below), speaks for itself. In place of the two layers of mosquito netting from the above piece, Nimmalaikaew is now painting on both thread and mesh with glass as an added layer. As you can see from the photograph showing the photographer, one of the pleasures of the piece is that viewers themselves become part of the work as they stand in front of it. (The photo is not yet a professional one, so for the moment you will have to use your imagination just a little.) By the way, there is one sister piece to this winning work available and it can be seen on the gallery website HERE.