841.594

Wittawat Tongkaew’s exhibition 841.594 opened on 7th October at Cartel Artspace in Bangkok, and runs until 30th October. The show’s title is taken from the metric measurements of an A1 poster (841x594mm) and, just as posters have historically been used as propaganda tools, Wittawat’s paintings highlight the propaganda value of everyday objects.

The gallery walls have been painted blue, and this colour also dominates several of the paintings. Poster No. 12 (โปสเตอร์แผ่นที่ ๑๒), for example, shows a television with a blue screen and a clock indicating 8 o’clock. (On the Thai flag, blue represents the monarchy, and a daily bulletin of royal news is broadcast on TV at 8pm.)

841.594 was shown earlier this year at the Many Cuts Art Space in Chachoengsao, and one painting from that exhibition—Poster No. 9 (โปสเตอร์แผ่นที่ ๙)—is not on show at Cartel. The missing work, now considered too sensitive, depicts the Thai flag dominated by a large blue panel, a smaller white space, and a tiny sliver of red. (On the flag, white symbolises the nation and red represents the people.) Omitting it is a surprising misjudgement of the mood of the times by an otherwise progressive gallery.