Pakpoom Silaphan

Pakpoom Silaphan was born in 1972 in Bangkok, Thailand. He received his BFA from Silapakorn University in Bangkok before moving to England in 2002 to study printmaking at Camberwell College of Art and a Masters in Fine Art which he received from Chelsea College of Art and Design.

Pakpoom Silaphan?s practice examines notions of globalisation, mass consumerism and the universal reach of cultural icons across the world. Silaphan primarily uses found-objects such as old metal advertising signs collected during his years living in Thailand, as his canvas. Also using vintage wooden Pepsi and Coca-Cola crates, reminiscent of Warhol?s Brillo Box installations; Silaphan re-works these objects to create a fresh interpretation of Pop Art and opens a discourse on the effects of advertising and mass consumption. The infiltration of western imagery and ideology had a profound influence on Silaphan?s understanding of the West and on his artistic practice.

Using his favoured artistic icons, such as Warhol, Dali and Frida Khalo, he collages and paints over these branded advertising signs and crates, implying the artists? identity as a recognised global brand itself. Silaphan creates an engaging dialogue between the relationship between East and West, and the universal language of signs and symbols that is accessible to all and has been imprinted on to the universal collective consciousness.