Dow’s dream rocks are on the move again
The Kathmandu Photo Gallery will exhibit the early Surrealist work of celebrated Thai photo-artist Dow Wasiksiri Saturday (November 4) through December 28.
“In Search of Self” will include the eerie image “Mysterious Shell” from 1993.
Psychoanalyst Carl Jung believed that the rocks seen in dreams symbolised the ego. A keen student of psychology, and inspired by a dream, Dow brought rocks to life in his series also titled “In Search of Self”, begun in 1982.
He photographed red rocks emerging from a toilet and a swimming pool, very much alive with intent as they go about their adventures, “their preoccupations known only to themselves”.
“Dow’s ability to create a surreal world rivals his muse Salvador Dali,” says Manit Sriwanichpoom, who runs the gallery and mounted this show.
“In the pre-Photoshop days, his technical expertise was far in advance of his photographic contemporaries. He makes us wonder whether we’re looking at a painting or a photograph.”
Dow graduated from Los Angeles City College in 1978 with an Associate in Arts degree in cinema and photography. His bachelor’s degree in radio and television broadcasting came from California State University.
Returning to Thailand in 1983, he became a successful fashion and advertising photographer. Since 2000 he has increasingly devoted his time to contemporary photography. His work is shown at photography festivals around the world. He was recently elected president of the Royal Photographic Society of Thailand.
The gallery is at 87 Pan Road near the Indian Temple off Silom and open daily except Sunday and Monday from 11am to 6pm.
Find out more at (02) 234 6700 or www.KathmanduPhotoBkk.com.
