natee utarit at singapore art museum

natee utarit: after painting singapore art museum, singapore on now until february 20th, 2011

‘natee utarit: after painting’ is the first solo exhibition of thai aritst, natee utarit, held at the singapore art museum. on show are more than 70 paintings spanning more than 20 years, documenting the artist’s oeuvre.

natee utarit left: micro history of politic no. 3 – lost right: ‘tragedy’

as the death of painting is debated in the west, it continues to be featured prominently within southeast asian culture as a medium of artistic expression. through his work, natee works towards achieving a technical mastery over celebrated forms of western art, while at the same time critically examining painting traditions.

the exhibition is broken into four parts: ‘painting as narrative’, ‘painting about paintings’, ‘painting after photography’ and ‘beginning after painting’, which reveal natee’s responses to the history of the painting tradition, along with its role as a mode of expression within contemporary art today.

natee utarit ‘tales of yesterday, today, tomorrow’

‘painting as narrative’ presents the last four years of the artist’s work, in which he has employed the painting to examine critical issues in contemporary thai society. pieces reveal stories through everyday objects and include those which fall into the still life category.

natee utarit ‘asian renaissance’

‘painting about paintings’ demonstrates natee’s examination of western art. the works displayed here reference numerous historical paintings by masters from his region, illustrating his investigation of the nature of the image.

natee utarit left: ‘the western light no.1’ right: ‘long live the king’

‘painting after photography’ addresses the issue of authenticity within the world of images through works that deal with the medium of photography. by re-framing photographs in the context of painting, natee reveals how time and memory play a key role in shaping the construction of one’s reality.

natee utarit left: ‘judith’ right: ‘couple’

finally ‘beginning after painting’ completes the mid-career survey with his early works, centred around modes of image making, including figuration and landscapes.

the exhibition is sponsored by credit suisse AG as part of the bank’s ‘innovation art’ series.