Becoming an artist
Before becoming a full-time artist, I felt I was an artist. However, I had no idea how to earn an income as an artist.
I was born in Chiang Mai but grew up and was raised in Lamphun Province, Thailand. I told my parents I wanted to study art when I was 14. Then I set my goals, which were not supported by anyone, not even my family or classmates. For most people, creative work is more like a hobby than a career. I had to look past all the obstacles and focus on my goals.
After passing the entrance exams and getting into university, I moved to Chiang Mai when I went to study at the Faculty of Fine Arts, Chiang Mai University. I studied printmaking and painting in class, but I also learned video, sound, and computer graphics techniques on my own. After graduation, in the year 1999, I went to Germany to study media arts at Hochschule Fuer Grafik und Buchkunst in Leipzig, Germany (former DDR). It was my first trip abroad. I went there alone, with some money from my parents. Within the first 6 months, I ran out of money. I couldn’t find a job. My life was practically falling apart. Luckily, just in time, I received a scholarship from Katholischer Akademischer Ausländer-Dienst (KAAD). KAAD had supported me until I graduated, and then in my last year, I got another scholarship from the Free State Sachsen Funds (Fördermittel des Freistaates Sachsen). Spending 3 years in Germany made me realize how little I knew about my Asian background.
From the year 2002 until 2004, I assisted many art projects of a Thai curator, Gridthiya Gaweewong, after I returned to Chiang Mai. I also worked as a full-time lecturer at the Painting Department in the same university I graduated with my BFA from. Since the year 2003, I have started to travel to many parts of Thailand and Southeast Asia to gain more understanding of my roots. In the year 2003, I joined Media Arts and Design, a new department at Chiang Mai University, at the very beginning as a lecturer. A few years later, I stopped working there and started to work with some researchers to produce my first documentary videos. Later, I also worked as a part-time lecturer for 2 different universities in Chiang Mai. Although working for many institutes, I have been keeping up with producing my own art projects.
Just before I went to New York with the Asian Culture Council fellowship in 2011, in the year 2010, I decided to work full-time as an artist and spent a lot of time creating this website.
The reason I use the name of my website, “Atelier Orange,” is just because the word “orange” in Thai means “som,” which is my name. “Som” means the orange color/fruit and also means “sour”!
If you wish to learn more about my professional life, please feel free to visit the site Biography and Curriculum Vitae.
