Michael Shaowanasai is one of Thailand’s most socially and culturally engaged artists. He works across a broad spectrum of media including performance, photography, video, film, painting, and installation.
Born 1964 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Michael Shaowanasai is one of Thailand’s most socially and culturally engaged artists. He works across a broad spectrum of media including performance, photography, video, film, painting, and installation. Known for his iconic cross- dressing monk Portrait of a Man in Habits, Michael is a versatile artist whose conceptual pieces, often text-based, are effective for their aesthetic brilliance and formal command.
With degrees from the San Francisco Art Institute (BFA) and the Art Institute of Chicago (MFA), and living alternately in the United States and Thailand, Michael bridges cultures producing works that if couched in today’s Thailand, effortlessly communicate humanistic ideas to a global audience. Shaowanasai has been exhibited in Asia, Europe (Venice Biennale 2003 and 2009), Australia and North America and his film and video works include The Adventure of Iron Pussy (2003), which was screened at Tokyo International Film Festival, the Berlin Film Festival, Melbourne International Film Festival and Busan International Film Festival among others. Michael Shaowanasai is represented in several institutional collections including the Singapore Art Museum, Pipit Maya Collection, MAIAM private museum, University of Winnipeg museum, SUNPRIDE foundation and National Gallery of Singapore.