Re-enchantment

The artistic practice of Savandhary Vongpoothorn draws from her Laotian heritage and Australian upbringing and her signature perforated paintings are a perfect synthesis of both.  Her abstract paintings on perforated canvas often combine multi-cultural elements from Western Abstraction, Buddhist tenets and calligraphy, Laotian textiles, as well as Australian Aboriginal paintings.  The perforated canvas of Re-enchantment, (2008) was made with with the assistance of her late father who used a soldering gun to create the thousands of small holes that expand the surfaces with which paint colours and light interact. The calligraphic loops that seemingly dance across the canvas represent the gesture of writing the characters for the Buddhist concept of the Triple Gem (the Buddha, the Law, and the Priesthood), which itself is an act of manifestation and creation. The painting’s title refers to a moment of enlightenment, of re-awakening to an inner truth, of a return to purpose and inspiration by an artist who has found the power of her own voice.