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New Media
Montien Boonma
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Enduring Understanding
Students will understand that the
use of readymades and other
media have created new
approaches to art and expanded its
definition.
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Essential Questions
Overarching Questions
 What is the extent of the influence of technology
in art?
 How has new media push the boundaries of art
making?
 Are there challenges to such approaches to art
making?
Topical Questions
 To what extent does art challenge the senses?
 Is art and religion inter-connected?
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5W1H
When
1953 - 2000
Where
How
Found Objects
Natural Materials
Why
His background
His beliefs
His influences
Thailand
Montien
Boonma
Which
Contemporary
What
Cultural Identity
Hope & Healing
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Who
1953: Born in Thailand.
1978: Attained BFA in Painting with
Silpakorn University.
1985-87: Studied at the Ecole Nationale
Supérieure des Beaux-Arts and the
University of Paris 8-Saint Denis,
France.
1988-95: Taught mixed media sculpture in
Faculty of Fine Arts, Chiangmai
University.
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When & Where
1973:
Transition from military to civilian rule- the urban middle class
(led by university students) vs. the old ruling class (led by the army).
1970s: After the reception in the 70s, the economy of Thailand started
to develop and grow.
Thailand
• The cultural background of Thailand steeped in Buddhist philosophy also
meant that it sets the tone for even contemporary artists.
• Setting up of Visual Dhamma Art Gallery by Austrian Alfred Pawlin in 1981
paved the way for promising artist like Boonma and some others, adding
new dimensions to neo-traditional Thai art and religious art. Thus, shows
become more thought-provoking.
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What
Subject Matter
• Concrete
• Steel
Subject Matter- Shapes and symbols
• Bells
- The sound of the bells are somewhat tranquil and relaxing. He felt his pain
and stress being relieved. Not all his bells produce sound- eg: the bells in the
Temple of the Mind are dead quiet.
• Stupas or Pagodas
- They are Buddhist structures that accommodate relics of Buddha or saints.
- These structures I Thailand also have a bell-like shape and are used for both
his 2-D and 3-D works.
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What
Subject Matter- Shapes and symbols
• Bowls for Alms
- Ascetics of Thailand do leave the temples to seek for alms
from the public.
- It is part of their spiritual practice to seek alms and a
meritorious act for members of the public to give alms.
• Lotus
- A symbol of purity, even if it grows out from marsh and
mud.
- The petals, stems and budding flower represent different
spiritual levels.
- The lotus is a common symbol used to embellish the statues
of Buddha in Thai temples.
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What
His Non- Religious Theme
The conditions of society in Thailand, eg: capitalistic
production and consumption (materialism).
The imbalances between capital and labour, agriculture
and industry, production and consumption.
The “tension and transformation between the rural and
urban” (http://nga.gov.au/Boonma/edu.cfm).
The issues of modernisation.
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What
His Religious Theme
- The influences of Buddhism- found in his symbolism and the ecological nature
of his materials (the sense of recycling what already exists in nature seems to
fulfil the Buddhist premise/basis of everything is inherently reusable and
mutable).
- The ephemeral of daily life and everything changes.
- The fragility and insecurity of lives.
- He questions suffering in life with his work.
- He also explores the concept of hope with traditional medicinal herbs and
spices.
- His later art making is as a healing process.
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Quote from Artist
“I use the pigments of primitive medicine and the voice
of a prayer with the visual construction, hoping that
people can feel calm, comfortable and rested in my
environment. I want my installation to give people the
feeling they are in a spiritual place, such as a church,
temple or mosque….We find answers to our questions
when we are calm.
- Montien Boonma –
January 1995
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Buddha, 1982
Mixed media, 14 x 36 x 37 cm
Collection of Chongrux Chanthaworrasut, Bangkok.
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The materials are assembled
to represent two buffaloes. It
serves as a reminder that these
are the animals used in agriculture,
particularly in rice production which
Is one of the main exports of Thailand.
A Pair of Water Buffaloes, 1988
Unhusked rice, sacks, straws, horn, stools,
14 x 100 x 70 cm
Visual Dhamma Gallery, Bangkok
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Black Stupa, 1989
Soil, pigment, mashed paper, charcoal, rice flour, rice grains,
110.5 x 78.8 inches
SAM, Singapore
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What- Black Stupa
Thailand is a Buddhist nation with more than
27 000 Buddhist temples. Most of these temples
contain large stupas. Originally created to contain the
relics of the Buddha and his scriptures, they are now
used to house the ashes of distinguished monks,
community leaders and philanthropists of the temples.
These sacred forms are viewed by the people as
symbols for proliferating the faith.
Boonma has used it to serve the precept of change and
transformation- the stupa becomes a make-up of
natural materials such as rice, soil and charcoal, also
transformed into an artwork.
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Paintings and Candles,1990
Candles on paper, 420 x 210 cm
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Concrete Construction: Hands and
Stupa, 1990
Cement, steel rebars, clay and
plastic sockets
88 x 68.5 x 17 inches.
Visual Dhamma Gallery, Thailand
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What - Concrete Construction
The Thai stupa is modelled after one of the most sacred and
aesthetic forms of Southeast Asia’s Mount Meru (a sacred
mountain in Hindu and Buddhist cosmology)- the center of the
universe. Boonma has used materials of modern architectual
such as concrete and steel rebar to create an ancient, sacred and
timeless shape. Hands are moulded and used here to represent
the numerous construction workers who have sweat and toiled
on the skyscrapers that have dominated the skyline of Bangkok.
The sculpture is delicately balanced with the two concretes at
both ends which indicates a Buddhist principle- the need to
maintain balance and equanimity in all things.
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Manual Acts in Red Handprints
Construction, 1990
Terracotta, rake, digging tools, 75 x
50 x 50 cm
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Alm, 1992.
Terracotta, steel, golden foil, 68 x 300 x 200 cm
Collection of Rama IX Art Museum Foundation, Bangkok
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Lotus Sound, 1993
Terracotta, lotus petals, gold foil, 300 x 300 x 350 cm
Collection of Petch Osathanugrah, Bangkok.
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What - Lotus Sound
• The structure is made of terracotta bells.
• They are installed in a “curved wall-like formation”.
• Gilded lotus petals are hung above the structure.
• Boonma was concerned of the diminishing importance of
Buddhist practices in the daily lives of the people in Thailand.
• Here, he attempted to re-create the inspiring sounds of the
bells in the Buddhist sanctuaries.
• The use of sound helps to evoke an inner peace among the
viewers.
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Vessel - Meditation, 1994
Terracotta, bowls, chopsticks, wood, lead, brass, fabric, Size variable
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Nature’s Breath: Arokhayasala, 1995
metal, herbs, terracotta, Collection of
Reinhart Frais, Bangkok
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Temple of the Mind: Sala for the Mind, 1995.
Herbs, brass bell, wooden boxes, 320 x 270 cm
Collection of National Art Gallery of Australia, Canberra
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What - Temple of the Mind
It is intended to heal the body, mind and soul in an enclosed but sacred
setting. The Thai term “arokhayasala” was used to describe the work“arokhaya” means free from sickness and “sala” means house. Together,
“arokhayasala” means a place without sickness.
The boxes are filled with medicinal and aromatic herbs.
He drew his experiences with the medicinal herbs when he took his sick wife
to the monasteries- the aroma has a calming effect.
Boonma articulates the impact of the sacred compounds and monasteriesthey gave him a warm feeling. The chanting, medicinal herbs are a form of
psychotherapy, “the best kind of healing possible.”
Hence, he found sanctuaries, temples and sites of rites are places that provide
people with refuge and calm, to gain knowledge and eventually freedom from
desire.
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Sala of the Mind, 1995-96
Steel, graphite, sound and battery, 270 x 100 x 100 cm
Collection of the Artist
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House of Hope, 1996-7
Steel, herbal medicine, wood, 400 x
300 x 600 cm
Collection of Estate of Montien
Boonma, Bangkok.
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What- House of Hope
House of Hope, 1996-7
Steel, herbal medicine, wood, 400 x 300 x 600 cm
Collection of Estate of Montien Boonma, Bangkok.
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Why
Background
 His education stint in Ecole Nationale Supérieure
des Beaux-Arts and the University of Paris 8-Saint Denis in
France provided him a platform to experiment with
Environment and Conceptual Art.
 He acquired his sense of being a Thai artist during his time in
France made him rediscover Thai materials- exploring their
forms, colours and textures, even smell, internal composition
and function in Thai society.
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Why
Background
 Tragic events started to unfold in his life, and some of his close family members
died in the 1990s.
 His wife, Chancham died of breast cancer in 1994, which leaves a greater impact
on him.
 Before she died, both husband and wife were living apart for ten years under the
advice of a Buddhist monk.
 He later developed brain tumour and died six years after his wife’s death.
 Before both their deaths, they spiritual and physical healing to overcome their
illnesses.
 They visited monasteries, temples, and other sacred sites.
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Why
Influence- Buddhism
• Originates from the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, born a prince and
became an ascetic.
• The precepts revolve around the concept of life and suffering and how one
can end suffering via the 4 noble truths.
• The noble eightfold path is to show Buddhists how they can attain Nirvana
with eight directions- right view, right intention, right speech, right discipline,
right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration.
• The Buddhist ethics, spiritual practices, especially meditation sprout from this
eight directions.
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Why
Influence- Buddhism
In Buddhism, enclosed sacred spaces represent
cosmic centres of contemplation and concentration.
However, Boonma also used Christian symbolism
along with Buddhist symbolism- a result of his visits
to Europe.
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How
• Mixed media painting- eg: The Black Stupa.
• Sculpture- eg: Manual Acts in Red Handprints
Construction
• Installation- eg: House of Hope.
• Assemblage- art that is created by assembling different
elements together.
- The elements can be scavenged items, bought items
or even items that are made by the artists themselves.
- For example- A Pair of Water Buffaloes
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How
• The use of found objects.
- His objects are often used befitting the artwork and cease to be
what they originally were and take on other forms.
- Otherwise, he uses the objects with connections to the origins of
the objects.
Pair of Water Buffaloes, 1988.
• The use of natural materials- soil, charcoal, rice, etc. Some of the
materials he used are also indigenous to Thailand.
• Colours in his works are more representative of things and not their
substances.
• Some works are sensual - making use of scents and inviting audience
to enter his works.
• They became more meditative and spiritual. Herbs are used in his
later works especially after the death of his loved ones.
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How
Materials
• Aromatic herbs and spices
- Items often used in Buddhist rituals.
- His paints are also made from herbs and spices for his 2D works.
- Some examples are cinnamon, sandalwood, tumeric and pepper.
• Earthenware
- It can be ephemeral and will crumble and decay in time.
- Some examples of earthenware objects he used- bowls and pots, and
terracotta bells.
• Candle Wax- burning of candles is symbolic of Buddhist rituals.
• He also uses candle for dripping wax.
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References
 Poshyananda, A. (2003), Montien Boonma: Temple of the Mind. Asia Link: London
 Poshyananda, A. (1992). Modern Art in Thailand, Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.
Oxford University Press: Oxford New York.
 Phillips, H. P. (1992). The Integrative Art of Modern Thailand. The Regents of the
University of Claifornia: USA.
 Huangfu, B. (Ed) (2003). Next Move, Contemporary Art from Thailand. LaSalle-SIA
College of the Arts: Singapore.
 http://nga.gov.au/Boonma/edu.cfm
 http://www.rama9art.org/montien/
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