Chan Aye

As a Sculptor, painter, writer (wrote many articles about art) ,and an illustrator of book cover, Chan Aye is a prominent and outstanding Artist of Myanmar. 

 

He had taken the leading in exhibition which is important Myanmar early contemporary art history that Rectangular Lantern Modern Art Shows in country wide scale since 1985.And then he took the leading of the Big Exhibition (Fountain of loving kindness- The proceed of the Exhibition -2008 was donated to the victims of the cyclone Nargis)

 

Chan Aye was bone in Mandalay .He is self taught but influenced by Pagyi Aung Soe, U Paw Oo Thett, U than Aung (Sculptor).He is one of the member at Law Ka Nut Gallery .Now he is starting establish to do sculpture garden at nearly Pyin Oo Lwin.

 

He *Started hole on canvas (*)-2004*.He is still presenting his own concept of the hole and making with his own concept art on any materiel .He had the project for the hole’s series in Vietnam.   In some Magazines and reports had disclosed on his works have certain deep mystical twist , sometime humorous ,others have a fatalistic or even philosophical touch. 

 

Chan Aye is a painter and conceptual artist/sculptor who makes post-modern interpretations of  famous Masterpieces' paintings  by piercing and puncturing holes onto the canvas-based  painting as a performance art-making process, but more importantly a Buddhist metaphor for "piercing the inner being". Being a devout Buddhist and seeking understanding about life is a critical artistic process of his art-making. He also explores the artistic production technique of art where conceptual can be both real and unreal. Such imagery can be a manufactured one by self-illusion and consciousness. The outcome is a contradicting  work of art that question rather than to answer for its viewers and audience. Such performance-based painting and its unique holes' production signify possibilities of its contextual meanings and imaging- production applications, which may have critical contribution to the Contemporary South-East-Asian's  art-making agenda.

 

About1980, Chan Aye founded a bookshop and have the ample opportunities to read Western art and literature, where the availability of such literature is extremely rare at that time. These foundations of art literacy give him the necessary motivation and basic knowledge to pursue an artistic profession and began to start painting in 1978. He started his self-study and is associated with  Bagyi Aung Soe, U Paw Oo Thett, U Than Aung.In 1980, he further his artistic exploration in scultpure and conceptual art performance and began to exhibit his works of art in Myanmar.  In the 1990s, he established a  tapestry workshop and explore the production techniques , as well as treads an art-making experimentation and production. In 2003, he moved to Yangon. In 2006, started the "Homage Series"  that explores the conceptual and 

performance-based  painting approach. In 2007, he wrote in Myanmar as translated into English as follows:

 

"In 20th century, a handful of artists had a doubt on the form they saw.They, at the same time, tried to see the genuine form. They started removing the adornments which covered the form of art. They purified all as they thought those were no more real art. A hope to see the genuine form drove them to do so. There was another mask after one and next..... It took them almost a century to take the masks off one after another. After 20th century, they came to know the role of effervescent movements. Under the ornaments and the mass of dust which were about to crack, they noticed the light, a genuine art. That was ultimate form completed with the bright intellect and genuine truth."

 

The concept of  "Form" is a deep one and not easily understood and expressed. It is particularly  shaped by ornamentation from art to architecture and it is the designing  of the creativity  experimentation in question. It is also an intellectual exercise with artistic theoretical modelling  to define art practices in this region. Chan Aye is living in an area of an ancient confluence centre  from two most important civilisations: China and India. Such a geographic confluence of Indochina  region also includes Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.But there is a confluence diversity where each centre unfolded differently since the 1960s.Why the history of this region unfolded so differently in comparison to other geographic continents politically and socially? What will mould the contrasting or similarity fate of artistic lives and their stories, may provide us artistic evidence in the conflict resolution in this region shaped by cultural diversity rather than homogenous identity as a region. While political and economic integration has been the main roadmap for peace and growth, local political climate and social change may unfold a complex region.

 

He had had overseas Exhibition in Singapore, Germany, Finland, France, Hong Kong, Thailand,  China.US ( New York), UK( London ) and India.

 

His art works are being  selected by some collectors and be selected at Singapore Sam Museum. 

He accepted awards:  Philip Morris Group of Companies Myanmar Art Awards 2001/2002 and The 2004 Sovereign Annual Contemporary Asia Art Prize in 2004.