100 Tonson Gallery and Japan Foundation cordially present  SPIRITUTAINMENT, a group exhibition that includes artists of different nationals and religious backgrounds, curated by Prabda Yoon, raising the question of entertainment’s role in religious traditions.

The exhibition invites the artists to contemplate the relationship between religion and entertainment, as these two subjects are considered incompatible in some religious beliefs, while the facts, both historical and contemporary, show that entertainment does play a big role in religious practices. The artists then presents their reaction through newly created works. The first artist, also the curator of the show, is Prabda Yoon, a writer who has written, among others, the screenplay for the acclaimed films “Last Life in the Universe” and “Invisible Waves”. He won the S.E.A. Write Award in 2002 for his collection of short stories, Probability. Moreover, there will be new artworks by Pasut  Kranrattasuit, who makes conspicuous conceptual sculptures, May-T Noyjinda artist and guitarist for the top Thai alternative band Moderndog, Sakareeya Amataya, the S.E.A. Write Award winner of 2010 for his poetry No Women in Poetry , Krit Ngamsom, a young Thai contemporary artist who creates mixed-media work, Peggy Wauters,  a Belgium artist who held her successful first solo show in Asia at 100 Tonson Gallery in 2008, Kohei Nawa, the most outstanding young Japanese artist who has numerous exhibitions around the world, and the Japanese artist Mai Miyake, whose art works are a fascinating combination of Japanese artistic traditions and contemporary imagery.

Moreover, there will be a special talk on the history of the religion/entertainment relationship by Thanes Wongyanawa, a unique Thai scholar in political science and cultural studies and also a assistant professor at Facualty of Political Science, Thammasat universiry, on the opening day ( 24 March).

The curator says:  “The exhibition’s goal is to study, explore, contemplate, and question the role of entertainment in religious and/or spiritual practices, especially those that claim to forbid or condemn it, like Thai Buddhism, through interpretations by contemporary artists who have interest in this issue, with the hope that the result would reflect at least some dimensions of the state of the society we live in, and to inspire constructive debates and thoughtful reactions from the spectators”   

Curator: Prabda Yoon

Opening Reception and talk by Thanes Wongyanawa : Thursday March 24, 2011 at 7 pm.
Exhibition Date: 24 March – 15 May 2011
Gallery’s opening Hours: Thursday  - Sunday at 11 am  - 7 pm