The bosom and the brush

Pinaree's "Breasts and Clouds" exhibition at 100 Tonson Gallery features her familiar motifs in 10 large paintings, seeking an alignment between two very different entities.

"I don't know why these two things come out together in my paintings," says the 46-year-old. "It may just be arising from my subconscious.

"A friend told me there is a Pali and Sanskrit word, payotara, that means 'holder of milk' or 'holder of water' - breasts and milk! Breasts gives milk, clouds give rain, and their shapes are similarly changeable."

And, writing in the show's catalogue, Stephen Pettifor offers a passage from the 1996 book "The Divine Feminine": "As bird-goddess she was the sky and her life-bestowing waters fell as the rain from her breasts, the clouds."

Pinaree has previously rendered her archetypal images in monotones, but the new paintings are in a sensual range of colours, while the breast vessels brim with blooms. She's made collages of pressed and dried flowers arranged in cloud shapes on the canvas, floating above cups formed by breasts, waiting to be filled.

Also adding to the show's appeal is interactivity: Viewers are given iPods containing pieces of music and prose selected by 17 of Pinaree's acquaintances, based on how the paintings inspired them.

You can sit on a comfy sofa at the centre of the gallery and listen to Annie Lennox singing "A Whiter Shade of Pale", which Pinaree's ex-husband, artist Chatchai Puipai, chose as his commentary on her work.

Thanachai Ujjin - better known as Pod Moderndog - thought the song "sima2 studio" by Omu-tone was appropriate for the exhibition. Singing instructor Moncheep Sivasinangkura opted for the instrumental "Pipeline" by the Alan Parsons Project. "The track has that warm feeling that we yearn for, just like the paintings," Moncheep says.

Elsewhere you'll hear Leonard Cohen's "Here It Is", David Bowie's "Life on Mars" and "I'm Too Sexy" by Right Said Fred.

Writer Nambun Namphenbun came up with the short story "The Flower Prince", which is reprinted in the catalogue: The prince tries to plant flowers in the clouds to encourage his subjects to similarly struggle for a brighter future.

"The songs that these people selected represent not just their thoughts on my work, they reflect each person's character," Pinaree says. "I believe there is still a gap between contemporary art and the average person, who may find it inconvenient to come and see. I think the language of music and literature can help people more easily associate with paintings."

Pinaree has, for a decade, used aspects of the female form as gender metaphors that are universal and deeply personal at the same time. Breasts become temple stupas, then morph into cooking pots.

The female torsos were rather scary in her 1996 installation "Confident Bodies", all sculpted from the fibre of the saa bush. Three years later, in "Womanly Bodies", she used saa to stitch together rhythmic sculptures. The women's bodies softened into puffy organza breast cushions in 2001's "Noon Nom", the title - "rest on a breast" - encouraging gallery visitors to get a little nurturing nap.

Breast-shaped baking moulds and other cooking vessels continue to pop up (or out) in Pinaree's ongoing "Breast Stupa Cookery" project. Guest chefs and artists find ways to fill out the aluminium and ceramic mammaries.

"People get directly involved with the form using the senses of sight, touch, scent and taste," she says. "This is my attempt to alter attitudes through the senses that are aroused by this strong female symbol."

Two spots in Bangkok - the Saladaeng Cafe on Soi Saladaeng and the Thompson Bar and Restaurant at the Jim Thompson House on Soi Kasemsan 2 opposite the National Stadium - are serving some of their menu items in Pinaree's breast vessels.

It's part of the concurrent show "The Place & The Plate", continuing until August 31.

"Breasts and Clouds" continues until August 19. The gallery is at 100 Soi Tonson off Ploenchit Road, open Thursday to Sunday from 11am to 7pm. Call (02) 684 1527 or visit 100TonsonGallery.com.

Khetsirin Pholdhampalit

The Nation