Dynamics of Industrial Revolution 4.0: Digital Technology Transformation and Cultural Evolution –
Wulandari et al (eds)
© 2021 The Author(s), ISBN 978-1-032-04451-4
Mixed media art in Thailand: The case study of Vichoke
Mukdamanee
V. Mukdamanee
Silpakorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
ABSTRACT: In Thailand, although many artists had already explored the possibility of mixed
media art, the history of term mixed media art officially originated in the 37th National Art
Exhibition in 1981. Vichoke Mukdamanee is among the Thai pioneer artists who had been deeply
interested in mixed media. For over 40 years of his art career, Vichoke Mukdamanee has created
many mixed media works, originating from his interest in the bonds between the environment,
technology, and life. By various materials, including wood, metal, brass, bronze, aluminum, clothes,
earthenware, scraps, and ready-made objects, Mukdamanee’s mixed media art reflects the artist’s
perspectives toward the change in external factors. His artwork expanded into more profound
concepts related to life, referring to rural life, Buddhist philosophy, and a family’s love and bond.
The artist attempted to establish a link between his concepts and internal overflowing emotions
(love, happiness, suffering, and sadness) and express it through painting, collage-assemblage, and
installation.
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 What is mixed media art?
The terms “mixed media art” or “mixed media” are complicated and confusing. Not only do
those outside the art sphere usually wonder “What are artists mixing?” when hearing the terms,
experienced individuals in the art circle are sometimes uncertain of the extent of mixed media art.
The extent of mixed media sometimes seems to cover various types of creative work. However,
at the same time it demonstrates specific characteristics, making mixed media art distinctive and
unique.
According to Collins English-language dictionary, the definition of mixed media is “the integrated use of different forms of media, especially within the arts.” In Thai, the term mixed media
means a combination of different forms of media under the meaning of art. The British Tate Art
Museum defines mixed media as art derived from a combination of various types of media and
materials, starting in 1912 based on the Cubist collage art by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque
(Tate, 2020). Cubist collage art influenced other artists in their period and has continued to impact
others, opening up new horizons for art practitioners to recognize that essentially art can be made of
anything or any combination of things. Moreover, another commonly heard term is “multi-media”.
Although multi-media is also a combination of various types of media, it is often referred to with
regard to electronic media, such as videos, movies, sounds, and computers.
“Mixed media” refers to artwork in a modern sense as it was only coined around a century ago.
Formerly, artwork was generally created with only one technique, such as with oil on canvas, color
on paper, and rock-carved, wood-carved, or bronze-molded sculptures. Although artists in the past
mixed various techniques, no one defined or distinguished the technique. Cubist and Dada artists
utilized materials to represent vital contents in artwork. The artists in this era discovered a new
way of expressing everyday human life accounts; they put or installed utility objects, including
newspaper sheets, magazine pages, furniture, or a television, as parts of artwork. Mixed media
DOI 10.1201/9781003193241-1
3
Wulandari et al (eds)
© 2021 The Author(s), ISBN 978-1-032-04451-4
Mixed media art in Thailand: The case study of Vichoke
Mukdamanee
V. Mukdamanee
Silpakorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
ABSTRACT: In Thailand, although many artists had already explored the possibility of mixed
media art, the history of term mixed media art officially originated in the 37th National Art
Exhibition in 1981. Vichoke Mukdamanee is among the Thai pioneer artists who had been deeply
interested in mixed media. For over 40 years of his art career, Vichoke Mukdamanee has created
many mixed media works, originating from his interest in the bonds between the environment,
technology, and life. By various materials, including wood, metal, brass, bronze, aluminum, clothes,
earthenware, scraps, and ready-made objects, Mukdamanee’s mixed media art reflects the artist’s
perspectives toward the change in external factors. His artwork expanded into more profound
concepts related to life, referring to rural life, Buddhist philosophy, and a family’s love and bond.
The artist attempted to establish a link between his concepts and internal overflowing emotions
(love, happiness, suffering, and sadness) and express it through painting, collage-assemblage, and
installation.
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 What is mixed media art?
The terms “mixed media art” or “mixed media” are complicated and confusing. Not only do
those outside the art sphere usually wonder “What are artists mixing?” when hearing the terms,
experienced individuals in the art circle are sometimes uncertain of the extent of mixed media art.
The extent of mixed media sometimes seems to cover various types of creative work. However,
at the same time it demonstrates specific characteristics, making mixed media art distinctive and
unique.
According to Collins English-language dictionary, the definition of mixed media is “the integrated use of different forms of media, especially within the arts.” In Thai, the term mixed media
means a combination of different forms of media under the meaning of art. The British Tate Art
Museum defines mixed media as art derived from a combination of various types of media and
materials, starting in 1912 based on the Cubist collage art by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque
(Tate, 2020). Cubist collage art influenced other artists in their period and has continued to impact
others, opening up new horizons for art practitioners to recognize that essentially art can be made of
anything or any combination of things. Moreover, another commonly heard term is “multi-media”.
Although multi-media is also a combination of various types of media, it is often referred to with
regard to electronic media, such as videos, movies, sounds, and computers.
“Mixed media” refers to artwork in a modern sense as it was only coined around a century ago.
Formerly, artwork was generally created with only one technique, such as with oil on canvas, color
on paper, and rock-carved, wood-carved, or bronze-molded sculptures. Although artists in the past
mixed various techniques, no one defined or distinguished the technique. Cubist and Dada artists
utilized materials to represent vital contents in artwork. The artists in this era discovered a new
way of expressing everyday human life accounts; they put or installed utility objects, including
newspaper sheets, magazine pages, furniture, or a television, as parts of artwork. Mixed media
DOI 10.1201/9781003193241-1
3