One of the leading female contemporary artists in Thailand, Pinaree Sanpitak talks about her latest project, Body Borders.

How is Flying Cubes the next step from your previous exhibitions?
I’ve been passionate about the human physique, as you can probably see from my work over the past 20 years. I use the human body to express myself, through a variety of media like photography, painting, collage and sculpture. All my exhibitions are related and inspire the next one. For example, when I did an exhibition of sculpture, I was struck by how we aren’t supposed to touch the artwork. This led to my next exhibition Noon Nom, comprised of breast-shaped pillows, in 2002. My later exhibitions are very interested in how the viewer can interact with the work. This Body Borders exhibition is about that as well.

So if this exhibition is about the human body, why does it involve cubes?
I got this inspiration a couple years ago when I was in Japan and discovered an origami shape that was a cube with wings. The cube itself is a very solid shape but when we add these wings to it, the cube becomes a body to me. It really captured my imagination.

Then what happened?
From that point on, I’d been thinking about what to do with cubes. When an art event in Chiang Mai invited me to show my work, I decided to make a scarecrow comprised of flying cubes hanging on bamboo sticks. And now, the first part of Body Borders will be shown at H gallery. The cubes are made from rattan, and the final product is somewhere between art and furniture. The audience is allowed to sit on them and experience through touch.

It’s a trio of exhibitions, right? What about the other two?
I made this shape in paper, in small sizes, and hung it around The Art Center Hall; this will be mixed with breast clouds made from glass. This extends the meaning—the body as symmetric shapes that can perfectly match with abstract forms. Then I came up with the idea of Anything Can Break. There will be sound sensors on the floor and when the audience is walking about, the sensor will respond by creating a sound each time. The final exhibition is paintings, which will be shown at 100Tonson Gallery.

Do you plan to have other special programs related to this exhibition?
Blind children from Baan Rachavithee are invited to visit the exhibitions. Even though they can’t see them, they can still interact with them through other senses.

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