Artwork is very often created specifically for our phones and feeds these days. Thai digital artist Lili Tae is quite happy to allow her creations a full life within our sleek rectangles of vibrating glass. They’re constantly evolving specimens in a digital petri dish, changing subtly along with the scroll as it slips away into the future. It’s their home, and since they’re native to this new world, they look best there. But Tae also loves physical pieces, and when she brings a print into the “real” world, the artwork changes along with its distinct environment, taking on specific colors and textures that make sense for the here and now, where feeling and light act differently than they do online.
Tae, whose full name is Lili Pinthita Taechamongkalapiwat, is frequently influenced by sights seen during rapid eye movement, that special time of the deepest sleep when we process our day’s memories and feelings. Her art is dreams spilled directly onto paper and glass. She daydreams as well, allowing her mind to drift and her pen to roam freely, drawing whatever comes to mind. The vibrant colors in her work are meant to capture that sense of detachment from reality. But her work is also inspired by the surrealness of Bangkok’s streets, the endless details hidden within Thai-Chinese shrines and sculptures, and walks taken in the park specifically to seek out bugs and insects.
Tae got her start with a fountain pen and paper. Her style is rooted in physical linework, but new digital tools have allowed her to experiment and grow beyond her comfort zone. She takes what she’s learned from ones and zeros and applies it to prints as well. Her physical editions are often printed with risograph and she’s fond of using textured cotton rag as a canvas. The process takes a different approach since some colors and gradients are hard to reproduce, but it enhances the nature of hand-drawn work. It also reclaims a sense of scale and intimacy difficult to create online. The simple act of holding something other than a phone is exciting.
