At the dawn of the earth, a pair of winged golden spiders were sent to weave the sky, which then blanketed the world. Afterward, they flew north, where they died from the cold. Their bodies transformed into two magical herbs, believed to cure, resurrect, and bring life.
Pun ko mung: Tai-Ahom Cosmology Manuscript.
Thumb Centric Cosmology
Bangkok Art Biennale 2024 | Nurture Gaia,
The National Gallery, Bangkok, From 24 Oct 2024 - 25 Feb 2025.
Can looking at stars on a mobile phone still evoke the sense of connection to the Earth once felt when gazing at the night sky? If so, what kind of relationship with the Earth or the universe would we experience? With a thumb-centered perspective, this project aims to craft a cybernetic cosmology--one in which, through the screen of a mobile phone, we feel a sense of connection to the cybernetic Earth and the cosmos.
Last year, I tried to see a comet, but city lights and clouds obscured the sky. Instead, I watched a live stream of the comet on my phone, likely joined by more people than those actually looking up. Despite its beauty on screen, the experience felt insignificant. This sparked thoughts about the journey from the sky to our mobile devices and the changing way we interact with the universe.
As we now look down to see the sky through our phones, the sense of connection we once felt with the Earth while star-gazing is fading, replaced by the act of looking down and the connection to the internet, even though these digital realms are grounded in the Earth’s resources.
The paintings, sculptures, and installations in this project explore a thumb-centric cosmology, seeing the sky and screens as one, suggesting a new version of reveries and feelings of connection with the Earth: a cybernetic Earth with internet. Using the ancient lens of Tai Ahom creation myth, in which two golden-winged spiders weave the sky, the work reflects how we now encounter the stars online, trapped in a web of networks under a 'web sky.'
Curiously and conspiratorially, imagining the deep connection to the world through our thumbs, while we're immersed in the internet or looking at the stars through the filter of our screens.
WITH FLASH!
Let's put a router in the house.
A Router, 2023, 40 × 30 cm, Pastel and Charcoal on Reflective Fabric. Another door in a house, as data flows in and out like air.
House-like structure of Tai Ahom's Cosmology
The Starry Web, 2023, 180 x 150 cm, Oil on canvas
The Attempt to Record The Cosmos, 2024,
2532 x 1779 pixels,
2.50 mins loop video
Thumb Centric Cosmology, 2024, 323 x 200 cm, Oil on Linen
I paint the journey of stars from the sky to the screen. But in reverse, I create and explore paths and environments through a mobile phone usage-centric perspective, tracing back to the sky.
Aiming to capture a reverie of connection, like a scene where a character closes their eyes to deeply perceive their surroundings, here, the environment expands from a thumb-centric microcosm.
May Thou Heal The Sky, 2024, 30 x 18 x 40 cm, 50 x 11 x 23 cm, Reflective Fabric, Ceramic.
After the spiders finish weaving the sky, they flew north, where they died from the cold. Their bodies transformed into two magical herbs “Yha Pulok”, believed to cure, resurrect, and bring life. —Pun ko mung (พื้นก่อเมือง): Tai-Ahom Cosmology Manuscript. 18th century.
These two pieces are folded into Bai Sri form, an element of the spiritual healing ceremony ”Su-Khwan.“ When the sky and connections fade in perception or in the abstract sense, I reflect on hope and rejuvenation— like Su Khwan—that restore and bring back the Khwan (spirit) of the sky, sun, moon, and earth.
The Breath of Terra, 2023, 120 x 100 cm, Oil on canvas
The Supper Massive Finger Trap, 2024, Acrylic, Reflective Fabric, Resin, Ceramic, Copper 120 cm height, width and length are variable (≈ 140 x 160).
The finger trap, with one end is sucking a thumb-shaped sculpture and the other an oval black hole, is inspired by smartphone addiction and the transfer of data from the physical world to the internet via a thumb. Not only the thumb, but all the fingers are drawn into a vast amount of information—massive big data in the cyber dimension—much like how a black hole pulls in objects and stretches them into lines (spaghettification).
Starlink Above the Waterfall and A String in The Hands of The Spider, 2024, 15 x 210 cm, Oil on Linen, Acrylic and Pastel on Reflective Fabric
The Thumb Touch, 2024, 180 x 300 cm, Oil on Linen.
A small touch on a screen holds immense power and the potential to impact the world. Even though it is only a light tap, the final and seemingly minor act within a chaotic process, it can produce far-reaching consequences. For me, this gesture is iconic of our time. Could we call this era the “Thumbocene”?
The lower part of the work not only resembles a thumbprint pressed onto the Earth, but is also inspired by copper mines that fuel the electrical industry. It emphasizes the role of the thumb in shaping the digital age. The image visualizes a thumbprint on the planet, marking a distinctive historical moment, one in which the world revolves around the thumb.