Those charming old songs

MUSIC AND ART come together this week in a new exhibition by veteran artist Pichit Tangcharoen, which opens at Ardel Gallery of Modern Art on Tuesday under the title “Story from Thai Records”.
“Music and the visual arts have been my lifelong passions and the time has now come for me to bring them together. This exhibition served as the catalyst I needed to combine the two,” says Pichit, who looks considerably younger than his 60 years.
In fact, music was Pichit’s first love. As a teenager, he was constantly listening to radio to catch songs by Elvis Presley, Cliff Richard, The Beatles, The Byrds, Bob Dylan, The Who, Brian Eno, Tangerine Dream, Genesis and Pink Floyd as well as gospel, soul, R&B, blues and jazz. His tastes were equally as wide when it came to Thai music, with Euea Sunthornsanan, Somyos Tassanapan, Thoon Thongjai, Suthep Wongkamhaeng, Sawalee Pakaphan and Charin Nanthanakorn, as well as luk thung stalwarts Sornkiri Sriprachuab, Sornchai Mekwichien and Poompuang Duangchan among his favourites.
While he was studying at Poh Chang Academy of Arts, he spent his savings on a portable cassette player with one speaker.
“I listened to cassettes while I was working on my art and would often wake up at 2 or 3am and realise I had left the player on,” Pichit recalls with a grin.

 

“I think the music I listened to in my formative years was reflective of my feelings back then.”
After graduating from Silpakorn University in 1979 with a degree in fine arts, Pichit worked as a teacher at the College of Fine Arts Lat Krabang. He later travelled to England with Chalermchai Kositpi- pat, Panya Vijinthanasarn and Sompop Budtarad to paint the murals at Wat Buddhapadipa in Wimbledon.
“I was walking in front of a music shop called Our Price in London when I heard a song that I later learned was Nina Simone’s ‘I Put a Spell on You’. It was the first vinyl record I ever owned,” says Pichit.
Musical tastes, of course, evolve with age and Pichit’s fondness for gospel, soul and jazz continued to grow. “I loved – and still love – Dixieland, New Orleans, swing and standard jazz and free jazz by Ornette Coleman and John Coltrane,” he says.
“I feel that jazz is like the art I’m doing. That is, it is full of creative melodies, feelings, and images. When I’m listening to jazz, it is like I am putting my everything into a work of art. Jazz can be compared to an art form: I compare American jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans with impressionism, and American jazz saxophonist Ornette Coleman with abstract expressionism,” says Pichit. “Both art and jazz are abstracts that mix with man’s creativity.”
These days, Pichit plays his music on a vintage vinyl player with a Denon DL-103R cartridge. He has Altec Lansing speakers and both the Fisher Pre Amp and Dynaco Power Vintage Amplifier. The sound, he says, is gorgeously analog.

 

For his new exhibition, Pichit has created 21 paintings inspired by his fascination with Thai golden oldies that extends from the sound of the music, the lyrics of songs and even the design of the sleeve.
“LPs have their own value,” says Pichit, who cites among his icons artists Piak Poster and Phanom Suwannabut.
The 21 paintings in “Story from Thai Records” are spread over two rooms. In the main room, Pichit points to a painting, called “Sieng Klui Baan Na Nao Lom Renoo” after luk thung singer Sornkiri Sriprachuab’s LP before leading me to Euea Sunthornsanan and Suraphol Sombatcharoen’s “Luem Mai Long” (“Not Over You”).

 

“I painted the portraits of these very important people in our music circle from their original LP sleeves using traditional techniques that give the paintings a faded look,” he explains. “This represents my concerns at how fast Thai culture is fading away.
“When I was young, I went to Ayutthaya and remember being impressed with the stunning night sky above the chedi of Wat Phra Sri Sanphet and the ruins of archaeological site. When I was in my second year at Poh Chang, I spent one week drawing the landscape at Ayutthaya Elephant Camp. On the road to Ayutthaya from Bangkok, you could see a chedi standing in the paddy fields. That view no longer exists. It has gone the same way as other Thai traditions as the language and manner of dress.
“I painted this work from the LP sleeve of the luk thung singer, which showed a man sitting on a buffalo and playing a khlui surrounded by nature. I used a fading technique to make the image stand out from the yellow background.
“And I’ve reinterpreted the original designs of the LP sleeves. For example, for my painting of Khru Euea, I’ve kept an original portrait of Khru Euea smoking a cigarette and added a violin and two butterflies. And for the painting of luk thung artist Suraphol, who was born in Suphan Buri but became a star in Bangkok, I’ve blended Suraphol’s original portrait with a background of rice fields and trees.”

 

Pichit has also created two paintings inspired by His Majesty the late King Bhumibol’s songs, “Chata Cheewit” (“HM Blues”) and “Saeng Tien” (“Candlelight Blues”).
“I was working on the painting of ‘Chata Cheewit’ when the King passed away. I recorded my sadness in the painting showing the loss of the King as a dimension, like heaven, and added a verse of the song in a lighter tone to signify a fading away.”
Pichit’s paintings in the second room are different, focusing on the beauty of old language and letter design. He stops at a painting, titled “La La Nor Bangkok”, which takes its name from the lyrics of Wipoj Petchsuphan’s “La Korn Bangkok” (“Goodbye Bangkok”).
“This painting reflects my depression at the changes in our lives with the death of the King. One night, I looked at the moon and thought how Thailand would be without him. In this work, the old language is being swallowed by the pale purple.
“The Thai-style letters on the cover of Ruangthong Thonglan-thom’s LP are no longer used. I created my ‘Sairoong’ painting by combining seven consonants and vowels with the seven colours of rainbow.
“I painted ‘Bangkok Night Time’ from a photo of Bangkok at night. The song from which it takes its name has beautiful lyrics. Bangkok in the past was also like that,” Pichit explains. “Likewise for ‘Sawasdee Bangkok No 1 and 2’, I used letter fonts to communicate my feelings and attitude to Bangkok.
“The first piece shows the outline of Wat Phra Kaew fading away together with ‘Sawasdee Bangkok’ in faded letters. For ‘Chan Aoey’, which is based on a song by ML Thanpuying Puangroi Sanitwong, I try and portray the beauty of loneliness through faded Thai-style fonts.”

Melodies in Paint

- The opening reception for Pichit Tangcharoen’s exhibition “Story from Thai Records” takes place on Tuesday evening at 6.30.
- The show runs at the Ardel Gallery of Modern Art through March 26.
- Find out more by calling (02) 422 2092 or visit Facebook/ARDEL Gallery of Modern Art.