Mr. Shadow 5

2018 - Photography (Photography)

112.5 x 167 cm

Nontawat Numbenchapol


The series of prints titled Mr. Shadow by Nontawat Numbenchapol engages with the history of and current state of militarization in Thailand. Each print features an invisible person, their silhouette only outlined by the military fatigues that they wear. The faceless figure in each work is pictured either in solitude or interacting with other camouflage-swathed ghosts. Ironically, the camouflage attire of each figure is the only part of them that is not erased by the artist. Photographed on a mountain range at the border between Shan State in Myanmar and Northern Thailand, the Mr. Shadow series epitomizes the haunting presence and effects of a militarized modernity and nation-state building across the region. In this iteration of the photo series, a solitary figure in full military fatigues leans against the base of a tree, assumedly strumming a guitar to pass the time. Though the compositions and imagery may differ across the images, what ties this series together is tension; there is a discernible sense of latent expectancy or apprehension that permeates the figures in waiting. Though the compositions and imagery may differ across the images, what ties this series together is a temporal tension; there is a discernible sense of latent expectancy or apprehension that permeates the figures in waiting.


Nontawat Numbenchapol is primarily known as a film director and television screenwriter, widely recognized for his documentary work. His moving image work is considered part of Thailand’s film wave exploring politics and the social sphere through poetics and cinematography. His work often unpacks societal and historical complexities in the porous geographies of inland Southeast Asia. Through an experimental documentary aesthetic, Numbenchapol’s work captures the stories of local people, refugees and immigrants, people marginalized by neo-colonial capitalism, and portrays them as living archives. He has made films and photographic installations concerning the contested Thai-Cambodia border and the holy archaeological site at its epicentre. Numbenchapol’s Mobile Lab Project researches experimental ways of visual and sound perception in humans.


Colors:



Related works sharing similar palette

Robbie Augspurger
© » UNRATED

Robbie Augspurger — UNRTD™ Robbie Augspurger Photographer Robbie Augspurger's retro portrait style is far for limited, looking at his work it is apparent that his creative undertaking is hilarious and brilliant, down to the very last impeccable detail...

CIAS Blends Sensibilities of Tattooing, Ancient Artists in His Paintings
© » HIGH FRUCTOSE

Carlos Mendes, who works under the name CIAS, is a painter and tattoo artist with a penchant toward ancient art history...

The Grim History of Rome’s Oldest Building
© » HYPERALLERGIC

The Grim History of Rome’s Oldest Building Skip to content The Carcer as it appears today, stripped of most of the religious decoration inserted in the 17th and 18th centuries...

A Mother’s Moving Portrait of Her
© » ANOTHER

Angela Hill’s Emotional Portrait of Her Daughter’s Adolescence | AnOther IDEA co-founder Angela Hill’s latest photo book, Edith, captures two decades of her daughter’s life as she navigates the rocky trials of adolescence December 04, 2023 Text Millen Brown-Ewens This time last year, IDEA co-founder Angela Hill had just released the independent publisher’s most personal publication to date: the first book of her own photography...

The Anabasis of May and Fusako Shigenobu, Masao Adachi, and 27 Years without Images
© » KADIST

Eric Baudelaire

2011

In a society saturated by images, Eric Baudelaire is interested in political events that have not found their representation...

Sebastián Silva's Rotting in the Sun by David Everitt Howe
© » BOMB

BOMB Magazine | Sebastián Silva's Rotting in the Sun Necessary (Required) Cookies that the site cannot function properly without...

Weekly Southeast Asia Radar: Art in the time of COVID-19 and more
© » ARTS EQUATOR

Weekly Southeast Asia Radar: Art in the time of COVID-19 and more | ArtsEquator Thinking and Talking about Arts and Culture in Southeast Asia ArtsEquator Radar Via Philippine Daily Inquirer March 19, 2020 ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region...

UK Museums Banned From Imposing Reproduction Fees After 70 Years
© » ARTLYST

In a groundbreaking verdict, the Court of Appeal has ushered in a significant transformation in the practices of UK museums concerning charging fees for reproducing historic artworks...

Art Dealer and Collector Bob Haboldt Donates a Bartholomeus Spranger Painting  to the Rijksmusuem - via NL Times
© » LARRY'S LIST

Art dealer and collector Bob Haboldt donated the painting Imago Pietatis by Bartholomeus Spranger to the Rijksmusuem, as a sign of hope and support during the coronavirus crisis, the museum announced...

SF art book fair pop-up
© » KADIST

Book Fair 12pm-7pm, Events 1pm-6:30pm Book Fair Participants: The Basement, Colpa Press, EGGY PRESS, Juana Berrio, LEAP ??? magazine (magazine in residence at Kadist), Matt Borruso, Owl Cave Books, Pier 24 Photography, Publication Studios, Rite Editions, 2nd Floor Projects, San Francisco Cinematheque, TBW Books, and THE THING Quarterly...

What is the music of my country? Race, harmony and diversity in Singapore
© » ARTS EQUATOR

What is the music of my country? Race, harmony and diversity in Singapore | ArtsEquator Thinking and Talking about Arts and Culture in Southeast Asia Articles Screengrab for the video of "Our Singapore"...

Restoration expert broke planning laws with work to his Cotswolds farmhouse
© » THE GUARDIAN

Restoration expert broke planning laws with work to his Cotswolds farmhouse | Gloucestershire | The Guardian Skip to main content Skip to navigation Skip to navigation John Evetts admitted carrying out work at his £1.5m farmhouse in the village of Saintbury, near Chipping Campden, without planning permission...

Pedro Reyes Part 2
© » KADIST

Pedro Reyes on Los Mutantes and more...

Sara Eliassen - A Blank Slate
© » KADIST

Cocktails 6pm, Screening 7pm Based in Oslo, Norwegian artist and conceptual filmmaker Sara Eliassen often returns to questions of self in relation to the audience’s gaze as typically positioned in society...

Gao Mingyan interview
© » KADIST

This interview was conducted by Biljana Ciric Camera by Gao Mingyan Translation by Wu Chenyun A collaboration between Yishu and KADIST...

Tropical Siesta
© » KADIST

Phan Thao Nguyên

2017

Tropical Siesta begins in a rural landscape of Vietnam...

GUILLOTINÆ Wanna Cry, Act Yellow: Break Room
© » KADIST

Sofía Córdova

2021

Set some time in the future, Sofía Córdova’s multi-channel film installation GUILLOTINÆ Wanna Cry, Act Yellow: Break Room imagines a public that worships pop stars and revolutionary leaders equally...

Les Chenilles
© » KADIST

Michelle and Noel Keserwany

2022

Les Chenilles by Michelle and Noël Keserwany is a sensual film that translates the source of women’s oppression into the means for their liberation...