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TO
THESE PEOPLE
I DEDICATE MY WORKS OF ART.
TO MON. MONET SATOMI,
WHO INITIATED ME
INTO DRAWING AND PAINTING.
TO PROFESSOR SILPA BHIRASRI,
WHO MADE A SCULPTOR OUT OF ME.
TO MY FELLOW ARTISTS AND THE PUBLIC, WHO ARE MY
CONSTANT SOURCE OF INSPIRATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT.
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| MISIEM
YIPINTSOI |
Misiem
Yipintsoi was born on August 20,
1906 to an Indonesian Chinese family in
Bangkok. She attended Assumption Convent school
until Mathayom 7 (11th Grade).
She married Intsoi Yip at age 17; they had five
children.
Misiem starting painting when she was 42
out of personal interest. Even though she had
no formal training in art, she was the first artist
to win the artist of distinction acclaim upon
winning a Gold Medal at the National Exhibition
of Art for the third consecutive time in 1954.
Later she began to devote her time to sculpture
and the support of art in Thailand. Her work can
be found in museums, galleries and private collections
all over the world.
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| PICKING
UP THE BRUSH |
After her second daughter
was struck with polio, Misiem took her to Denmark
for treatment and ended up spending 14 months
in that country. During that time
she took in a lot of art at friend’s homes and
many European museums. She particularly liked
Western art from the late 19th century and bought
a good amount of reproductions to decorate her
home in Bangkok. But once she returned home
she found that the work she’ d bought lacked
feeling, so she started to search for local
artists who workedin that style. Having found
none, she decidedto study painting. “The walls
are full of reproductions. Why not paint myself?
” Misiem took her first painting lessons in
1948 with Monet Satomi, the Japanese cultural
attache to Thailand in WWII years - After just
one year, her teacher suggested she submit her
paintings at the first National Exhibition of
Art and “Santikham”, her painting of the rain
trees lining Soi Chidlom, was awarded the first
Gold Medal in Painting.In 1951, disparaging
remarks about her skills prompted Misiem to
enter into competition at the National Exhibition
of Art “Honolulu”, a landscape she painted from
beside the window of her room while on holiday
in Hawaii. The following year “Sriracha” became
the last painting she entered into competition.
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paintings were awarded Gold Medals and she became
the first artist to earn the artist of distinction. |
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| JOURNEYS |
After Monet Satomi retired
to France in 1950, Misiem continued to explore
the art of painting onher
own.Though she could no longer enter her paintings
into competition at the National Exhibition
of Art, she continued to show her work there
regularly. Her paintings from subsequent periods
show an impression of the colors of nature,
seasonal changes, and places she found on her
journeys. “For me, every trip is an adventure
where you always find new stories and experiences.”
In addition to painting, Misiem also liked photography
and wrote down her impressions as keepsakes.
“When I am back at my studio in Bangkok, I often
use those ideas to create something different.”
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| PEOPLE
AND THINGS AROUND HER |
| Misiem
had painted continuously for eight years before
she began to take an interest in sculpture. Most
of her works are based on people and things around
her. She loved to paint landscapes and nature the
most, and these were where her greatest strength
lay. When she was free from other obligations she’d
take a car trip to the country, packing a canvas
and painting gear with her to paint from real locations.
Misiem painted many landscapes and scenes from typical
Thai life, such as rice fields and houses by a canal.
Not long after this style of painting became a fashion
in contemporary art.“I began to understand the language
of color, dark, light, glowing and harmonious. Even
dark, muddy water in canals, ponds and swamps can
glow, reflecting the beauty of light and color to
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eyes.
Water lilies of different kinds and colors - pink,
purple, white, green, violet - bloomed all around
me. In summertime Flame of the Forest trees would
bloom a vibrant red, decorating both sides of
Sathorn Canal and the entire road to Hua Hin -
was our car running through a fire raging on both
sides?”Misiem’s paintings of Thai life were what
started her acquaintance with Silpa Bhirasri,
her sculpture teacher. “In just a few months I
was amazed with the progress in Misiem’s work.
Satomi invited me to come see her work; it was
incredibly interesting.” Acharn Silpa saw Misiem’s
work for the first time at an informal showing
of just a few pieces at the YWCA. After seeing
the show an impressed Bhirasri asked to meet the
artist and apologised to her for never having
given her work the attention it deserved.Misiem
painted her last picture in 1958. Subsequently
she began to take a serious interest in sculpture
and turned her garage into a studio where she
spent her remaining years working on sculptures.
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