Fiber Art: High Class Denim
Recently I visited an art gallery where the work of Pongsakul Chalao was on exhibit. It was possibly the most incredible fiber art I have ever seen.
At first glance I thought they were paintings or photographs.
Then I stepped closer. The detail took my breath away.
Can you imagine trying to capture light as he did?
Part of capturing light is the suggestion of shadow.
There is plenty of shading,
and even reflections on the water.
I love his occasional use of a garment tag.
The under sides of tags are as useful as the fronts.
And who is to say they can’t be upside down?
All of the fabric is denim. He has been collecting jeans for 10 years.
“As the son of a tailor, I become absorbed in the art of using fabric,” he said. “I collage my life experiences and surrounding on my work, and I see simplicity in complexity.”
There were about a dozen pieces in the exhibit. I walked through it several times.
It seems that his work has mostly been exhibited in Bangkok, and he has a Facebook page where you can see much more.
I love this photo of the artist at work.
Here’s an article with more detail from the Bangkok Post.
What do you think? Please let me know you were here in the comments!