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Dick's
Café Bangkok Duangthawee Plaza 894 / 7- 8 Soi Pratoochai Surawong Road, Bangkok Tel: (66) 0-2637 0078
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 From 29 November
2001 - 9 January 2002 |
"'The
moment of the beautiful youth, which I constantly
paint, is just like a flower. It's a ravishing
bud, then a gorgeous rose, then it blows away, '
says the artist Symon, whose oils of male figures
are bursting into bloom in the exhibition 'Show
Me Yours ' at Dick's Café from November 29 till
January 9, 2002. 'Capturing that moment is a wonderful event, but trying to grasp it is usually a disaster. Because then you end up with plastic flowers and plastic surgery! ' Years may pass, but sometimes looks can remain timeless. The lithe fishermen, farmers and dancers he depicts will never have more perfect proportions and such flawless skin as during Symon's life-modelling sessions. But one way to preserve their achingly sensual contours in more than just fleeting memory is to have one of them hung in your bedroom. In a painting on the wall, that is. "There's no shortage of Asiaphiles with nostalgia for precious time spent in the company of jasmine-scented men. Yet most images of Asian males are very matter-of-fact and conform to traditional social roles and mainstream rules. Few other souvenirs celebrate what Symon calls ' the kind of tactile behaviour common among ordinary men in Bali or Thailand. ' He captures in paint and sculpture the nonchalant, unawares sensuality of the Asian male figure lounging, strolling, bathing or working. While some portrayals emphasise strength and vigour, other canvases are more coy and delicate, while still swoon-inducing. Adorned with gilded crowns, necklaces and loincloths, his visions of dancers, warriors and princes evoke the skimpily costumed revelers you see in upcountry festivals. "Yet this American who's lived three decades in Asia like a latter-day Gauguin communicates these classic images with a Western pop twist and ' polychromystic ' colours. His Technicolor torsos, neon night scenes and whimsical backdrops are a fusion of his comic book training, woodblocks of Hindu gods and penchant for iridescent paint. And he has a talent for seeking out men who can project such fantasy characters for real. ' The model is not just beautiful, but someone who can bring the myth of beauty to you, and from whom you can bring up beauty and bring up emotions, ' explains Symon. No wonder some collectors report about realising only later, that a portrait they've bought resembles a lover! It's not just the flesh and intimacy that sets the heart and loins racing, but the feeling that they're heroes from a fable. ' I see my characters like the Disney Aladdin or The Prince of Egypt, or Sinbad. Heís also in a Candide situation: innocence abroad, ' he says. ' I choose models because they're archetypal, but models and friends and movie stars are quite different. You ask someone to model for a god, but you mustn't expect them to be one.' And now you can also experience the world of Symon and his models in the highly illustrated new book about his art and lifestyle 'Property of the Artist: Symon by Philip Cornwel-Smith, available at Bookazine. Both author and artist will sign copies of the book at the opening party on November 30. Another Symon show will start around New Year at Carpediem Galleries, Soi Ruam Rudi, Bangkok (02-250 0408). Visit the web site www.symonbali.com/" |
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Café Bangkok, Duangthawee Plaza, 894/7- 8 Soi
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