Tension and Passion: Political Statements through Buddhist Iconography in the Art of Pratuang Emjaroen and Thawan Duchanee in the Cold War Era

Abstract

Background and objective (s): Buddhism is one of the fundamental aspects of Thai identity, and Buddhist iconography is often discussed within religious contexts. By momentarily stepping away from their role as sacred objects, the study for this paper sheds light on the underexplored socio-political perspective of Buddhist iconography in Thai art with respect to Cold War Thailand – the period that was packed with political tensions and social movements – focusing on Pratuang Emjaroen and Thawan Duchanee, whose art practices intersected with student movements and calls for freedom of speech. This study demonstrates how Buddhist iconography became a vehicle for political statements during the Cold War era.

Methodology: Based on iconology, this study highlights the socio-political connections between Buddhist iconography and the Cold War social landscape across three levels: “pre- conographical description,” “iconographical analysis,” and “iconological interpretation.” Combining multiple qualitative data with evidence sourced from the Asia Art Archive and the Rama IX Art Museum Foundation, artists’ family archives. The study involved fieldwork at galleries and cultural institutions, and close readings of Pratuang Emjaroen and Thawan Duchanee’s paintings during the 1970s.

Main result: The paper articulates how Buddhist iconography in the Cold War era operated as a political statement with four following findings. Firstly, two keywords capture the socio-political landscape of society during the Cold War: tension and passion. “Tension” refers to the conflict between opposing ideologies, manifested in volatile social upheavals and transformations, while “passion” reflects grassroots claims and the political statement of people at the level of civic awakening. Secondly, the case of Pratuang Emjaroen reveals “tension” in the student movement (1973), while “passion” is the artist’s commitment to give voice to ordinary people, as seen in Dharma and Adharma (1973), Red Morning Glory and Rotten Gun (1976). These paintings show Pratuang Emjaroen’s indictment of violence, mourning of the dead, and express a hope for an inclusive society. Another work, the Fasting Buddha (Sacrifice) (1976), reflects his empathy for the people who were suffering from extreme political tension. This practice indicates a significant breakthrough as Buddhist iconography shifts from holy serenity to a social commentary that mirrors social agitations. More specifically, the Buddha is interpreted as an anguished sufferer (with bullet holes in the face and a severed head), symbolizing the moral ethic trauma. Thirdly, Thawan Duchanee’s works underscore the tension between the public’s deep-rooted recognition of Buddhist iconography and artists’ autonomy as Thawan engaged Buddhist iconography with nudity and animal motifs to highlight the human paradox between the transcendent side and the secular side. For example, to critique the acts of cutting up and trafficking Buddha images, his work Untitled (1970-1971) fuses temples and stupas with nude figures. This innovation provoked considerable backlash, and his works were vandalized. Lastly, this paper argues that the Cold War also brought new economic activity, which directly benefited the growth of art exhibitions with non-institutional art groups (e.g., Dharma Group), bank and entrepreneurled patronage systems, and the emergence of art foundations (e.g., BIMA), fostering artistic freedom. These networks address “tension and passion” as a cultural duality between Cold War tensions and artists’ individualized statements.

Relevance to Thai Studies: The study explored the interaction between artists, Buddhist iconography and Cold War influence in a Thai context, thereby refining studies of the Cold War’s socio-political transformation and offering a new perspective on the analysis of Buddhist iconography.

Conclusion: Cold War Thailand was a crucible in which multiple differences and tensions coexisted. Although the student demonstrations ended in brutal repression, the Buddhist iconography of Pratuang Emjaroen and Thawan Duchanee have become a lasting cultural legacy, testifying to the passions of Thai people who strove for freedom of speech in the 1970s. The wave was not only personal but also owed to the social structural transition as seen in private sponsorship from emerging capitalists and non-institutional art groups, signaling a trend to a more inclusive society.