Kamonlak Sukchai

The Story of Red Lotus

Long ago in a faraway village there was one fair lady, who believed was born from sacred river, floated along near the shore. The villagers rescued her. Once she set foot on shore, her scent lured all men in fighting for possessing her purity. The chaos traveled far, in order to stop the conflict the king exiled her to live with the hermit and twelve ascetic women near the sacred pond in the wood.

One day the fair lady got her first period. She could not stop herself from the desire for the fruits in the forest. While the sacred ritual was held, she sneaked out to search for the holy tree, climbing up high to joyfully taste the holy fruits. Her period accidentally dropped on the man passing by. This man happened to be the powerful sorcery. But that one drop vanished all his power. Without the power he could not leave the sacred forest. Once he realised it was the fair lady from the sacred river, he asked for her purity in return for what he’d lost. They at last secretly had a forbidden affair.

Their secret was sealed until one day. In the grand ceremony, king’s ritual bath, king and all the villagers were gathering in the wood. The hermit and twelve ascetic women began the ritual by scattering all the gorgeous flowers into the pond. All eyes now were set at the young lady who was required to bathe in the sacred pond. Once her foot was set in, the water suddenly turned red. Everyone was outraged as the holy pond now was sullied and impure.They condemned her, cut her breast, ripped out her privates as a sacrifice asking for forgiveness.

Before last breath, the fair lady urged her last wish to Indra the great god. As her next life,she only wished for being one flower, serving the holiness in the world RED LOTUS.

กมลลักษณ์ สุขชัย

เกิดปี พ.ศ. 2537 ผลงานของกมลลักษณ์เน้นการสำรวจและตั้งคำถามกับเรื่องเล่าพื้นถิ่นในแถบประเทศเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้ ที่มีอิทธิพลต่อเรื่องราวทางประวัติศาสตร์ การสร้างชาติ ความเชื่อทางศาสนา และมายาคติต่อการรับรู้เรื่องเพศ จากจุดเริ่มต้นจนมาถึงชุดผลงานปัจจุบัน เธอต้องการทดลองหาความเป็นไปได้ใหม่ๆ ที่ศิลปะภาพถ่ายแบบคอลลาจจะสามารถชักชวนผู้คนให้ย้อนกลับไปตีความเรื่องราวความเชื่อเก่าแก่ผ่านสายตาและมุมมองของความเป็นปัจจุบัน

KAMONLAK SUKCHAI

Born in Thailand in 1994, Kamonlak Sukchai is a Thai photographer who is known for her collage works. Amongst one of her most notable works is the RED LOTUS which exposes folklores through the photographic medium and reflects their influences on feminism.

Kamonlak's works frequently explore Southeast Asian folklores and their influences on history, national identity, religious belief and sexual mythology. Since her early works, she likes to experiment with the collage technique to find new possibilities especially on how it can encourage the audience to go back and reinterpret old beliefs from a new perspective.

Wedsite : https://kamonlaksukchai.com/

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