In an intense collaboration on-site, surrounded by amazing artists and a deeply tropical climate, my blend of Western formal language and Thai material aesthetics emerged, crafted with the extremely soft royal Thai wax.
The sculpture explores the theme of transformation. An archaic double-spiral-snail head rises from a mythologically inspired, scaled form that recalls a serpent or dragon (partly human) resting on a symbolic world-body.
The motif fuses organic shapes with symbols from various cults, shifting between monumental presence and the ephemeral nature of wax.
The material, royal beeswax, was a real challenge: soft, sensitive, warm, insanely expensive, a substance that quite literally “lives.” The creation process was both physically and emotionally intense.
Especially difficult was keeping the sculptural form stable in high humidity and temperatures above 35°C. The wax responded to every touch, every motion, demanding a sculptural mindset beyond stone or metal.
Looking back, this sculpture marks an important milestone in my work. It unites my artistic signature with an open interplay between cultures and materials. And it remains, like all wax sculptures, intentionally impermanent. The temporary material embodies fragility and that’s exactly what gives it its strength.
Ubon Ratchathani (Thailand) 2008
