Thanawat Numcharoen
Collapsing timelines and conjuring possibilities through fabulations
By Wirunwan Victoria Pitaktong
Thanawat Numcharoen in front of his latest painting. Image courtesy of the artist.
In a rational world where regional folklores are considered vernacular because of their supposed lack of a factual foundation, Thanawat Numcharoen, or Frank, finds the fictional incredible. Through speculative fabulations, Thanawat explores these “minor” stories, employing their ambiguity and the consequent possibilities, instead of shunning them. As Thanawat works at the intersection of diverse disciplines, from visual arts and literature to technology and archaeology, he treats the disciplines as shards of a kaleidoscope. Inasmuch as each turning of the shards produces different images, each combination of knowledge forms only a vantage point to view the world at large. As such, he is a versatile artist, working with a number of mediums including writing, painting, sculpture, and video.
Thanawat Numcharoen, ‘Snake in the Garden’, 2023, acrylic on canvas, 30 x 40cm. As part of the ‘Arcane Plateau’ exhibition, 2023. Image courtesy of the artist.
In 2023, Thanawat exhibited his first solo show, ‘Arcane Plateau’ at Speedy Grandma. Thanawat wrote a novel which draws from his research on origin stories from various cultures. The novel is a universe in which Thanawat has conjured speaking animals, immortal beings, burning meteorites, the many great floods, and first-ever humans, all of which transpire simultaneously. Regarding this novel as a starting point of imagination, Thanawat created a series of paintings and sculptures which oscillate between the real and the mythical, as well as the human and the chimeric.
Thanawat earned a BFA in Visual Arts from the Faculty of Painting, Sculpture, and Graphic Arts, Silpakorn University in 2020. This year, Thanawat has been part of two group shows, including ‘Allegory of the Cave Part I & II’ at Silpakorn University, and ‘Surin’ at TARS Unlimited. He currently lives and works in Sisaket. From time to time, Thanawat commutes to Bangkok by train.
Click here to read our dialogue with Thanawat Numcharoen, where he speaks about his Isan background, his first solo show ‘Arcane Plateau’, and how he developed his particular style of painting.
About the writer
Wirunwan Victoria Pitaktong works with translation in its varied forms and manifestations. In 2020, she co-founded the Namkheun Collective, a literary collective based in Bangkok, Thailand. Since 2019, Pitaktong has also been a member of the artistic collective Speedy Grandma.
