Chianciano Art Museum
Critical Analysis Artist: Somsak Chaituch Art Critic: Karen Lappon
ICAC
International Confederation of Art Critics
Critical Analysis Artist: Somsak Chaituch Art Critic: Karen Lappon
The Museum The Museum of Art of Chianciano hosts a series of collections ranging from Neolithic and Asiatic to Contemporary art. There are approximately a thousand works on display. Visitors are able to view paintings and sculptures by artists such as Tom Nash, Salvador Dali, Sir Henry Moore, Frances Turner, Mario Schifano, Damien Hirst, Brian Willsher and Albert Louden, drawings by the likes of Magritte, Guttuso and Munch; historical works from Royal Collections and original etchings by masters such as Dürer and Rembrandt. The museum is known for organising annual international events, including the Chianciano International Art Award and the Biennale of Chianciano.
Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528) “Joachim and the Angel” Original woodcut, circa 1504
Sir Henry Moore (1898-1986) “Head” Bronze Sculpture
ICAC
International Confederation of Art Critics
The Critic
Karen Lappon, born in Santander, Spain, is an Italian art critic and essay writer that operates in London, UK. Although an expert on the Italian Renaissance period, Lappon is also great admirer of contemporary art. Karen studied at the “I Liceo Artistico in Via Ripetta” and at the “La Sapienza” University in Rome. A book of great interest curated by Karen is the “2nd Millenium”, the publication of an important exhibition at the Lord Leighton Museum, in which the talent and art of the prominent painter, Frances Turner - selected 5 times in a row for the BP Award at the National Portrait Gallery in London - is highlighted. This artist has been spotted and appreciated by another great critic, Normal Searle, that wrote an article in the Evening Standard on one of Frances’ paintings. “Vita e Opere di Antonio Sbrana” is a publication in which Lappon ties the activity of Sbrana and his influences on the “Macchiaioli” of the 19th century, like Natali and Fattori. A publication that illustrates the continuity of this movement and how it is still present in Italy today. Besides being a consultant for the Chianciano Museum of Art, Karen Lappon is part of the Board that selects artists for the Biennale, a difficult task that she has undertaken since 2009, along with other curators, to choose 100 artists out of 2000 applicants that will be part of the Chianciano Biennale. Karen is part of the jury of the London Biennale where 120 artists, selected from 40 different countries participate, and has been chosen by the organisers to accompany the Mayor of Kensington and Chelsea during the opening of the biennale.
“Dancing Eyes” Acrylic on linen by Somsak Chaituch
The Artist Born in a little village in Northern Thailand, Somsak Chaituch was raised amidst an overwhelming nature and rich culture both filled with warm colours. As a child Somsak helped the neighbouring craftsmen with woodcarving for decoration of houses. At school appeared his talent for drawing with a sharp eye for details and character of beings. In 1995 Somsak moved to the Netherlands for his study of Arts. In 2001 he graduated in Fine Arts (with honour) at the School of the Arts in Utrecht, then, in 2003 he held a Master of Fine Arts at the Dutch Art Institute ArtEz. During his study of the arts in the Netherlands, Somsak developed an abstract figurative expressionistic style that still refers to the nature and culture of his origin. Nowadays Somsak Chaituch has developed a very identical style in brushwork and colour composition. With his characteristically crossover identity between east and west and with his lyric between abstract and figurative, Somsak Chaituch makes fascinating paintings. Awards: • 2015 International Art Award The David of Bernini, Lecce, Italy • 2015 International Prize Michelangelo-Artists at the Jubilee, Rome, Italy • 2015 Anglo Italian Academy Award, Biennale Chianciano Museum, Italy • 2015 Marco Polo Internationational Prize, Venice, Italy • 2015 International Award Mazzullo, Taormina, Italy • 2015 Roma Imperiale Prize, Rome, Italy • 2014 Europe in Art, First Biennial Paris, France • 2005 Starting Stipend, Fonds voor Beeldende kunsten, vormgeving en bouwkunst, Amsterdam, The Netherlands • 2002 Best Young Artist, Stichting Jonge Kunst Amersfoort, The Netherlands • 2001 Graduation Award, SBK Amsterdam-Osdorp, The Netherlands
“After the Tsunami” Acrylic on linen by Somsak Chaituch
The Critique Somsak Chaituch is an abstract and figurative expressionist artist that combines both eastern and western art. His eastern cultural origins and his western artistic upbringing are fused together creating a unique style with a wonderfully elegant and charming taste. Somsak’s works are permeated with a sense of unfathomable depth conjured up directly from dreams. Continuous wave-like patterns created by curving ribbon forms, charge his hypnotic paintings with a swirling flow. Serpentine lines move rhythmically across the canvases creating a sinuous movement that mesmerises the viewer completely. The bright and lively colours of Chaituch’s palette overlap but never intertwine. Each a defined plane within the pictorial space. The use of strong, warm, unblended colours has a powerful and joyous effect on the eye and makes his works immediately and intuitively comprehensible. No, complicated rationalisation is needed to understand what the senses have already interpreted and brought into the sphere of consciousness through pure emotional responses. A juxtaposition of exuberance and composure characterise Somsak’s paintings. Large, but tamed, brushstrokes of colour paired with meticulous and careful details that ask for closer inspection. Paintings with many levels of observation that keep our attention constantly captured. A harmonious blossoming of vitality and freshness, a jubilation of the senses on a bed of serene peacefulness. The unique style of this talented artist remind us of masters such as Wilfredo Lam, Brice Marden, Frank Stella, Diego Rivera and even Van Gogh all fused together with Buddhist art, but it would still be reductive when considering Somsak Chaituch’s oeuvre. The aesthetic beauty and significance of Chaituch’s art is astounding and the depth of emotions it suscitates is a journey we will never want to come back from.
Karen Lappon International Confederation of Art Critics
“A Dream” Acrylic on linen by Somsak Chaituch
“After the Tsunami” Acrylic on linen by Somsak Chaituch
International Confederation of Art Critics www.international-confederation-art-critics.org