French artist cries foul over censorship of nude mural near Bangkok’s red-light district
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The mural of a nude person had been covered with dark paint, leaving only a floral pattern of twisting green vines and vibrant flowers visible.
PHOTO: MYRTILLE TIBAYRENC/FACEBOOK
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BANGKOK - A French artist has cried foul over what she described as “hypocrisy” after her mural depicting a nude person reclining on one side, with their back and bottom visible, was censored by the hotel on whose wall it was painted.
Ms Myrtille Tibayrenc wrote on her Facebook page on Oct 13 that her mural, painted on a hotel wall near Soi Patpong, had been covered with dark paint, leaving only a floral pattern of twisting green vines and vibrant flowers visible.
Ms Tibayrenc had been invited by the French Embassy in Bangkok to take part in the Krung Thep Creative Streets project, where she painted a striking mural featuring a central human figure surrounded by botanical and avian elements.
The figure – solitary, androgynous and youthful – reclined across the lower section of the mural, nude and resting their head on one arm while facing slightly towards the viewer.
In her post, Ms Tibayrenc said the mural had been censored without her consent.
“My painting has been completely censored without my permission! It is ironic that this painting is just a few metres from Patpong, the red-light district where hundreds of girls are half-naked... what hypocrisy,” she wrote.
Shortly after her post, the Bang Rak District Office issued a statement on Facebook clarifying that the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) had nothing to do with the censorship.
The district office said it had checked with the hotel and was told that the hotel wanted to “correct” the mural, adding that the artist had been informed in advance.
It added that after the mural “was completely corrected”, the hotel management would contact the artist directly to explain.
However, the district office later removed its post after many Thai social-media users pointed out that Ms Tibayrenc had clearly said she was not informed beforehand. No further clarification has since been issued by the BMA.
Ms Tibayrenc is a French artist, curator and art-centre director based primarily in Thailand. Known for her figurative and provocative style, her work is inspired by Renaissance techniques and often explores human form and emotion.
She frequently exhibits in both established galleries and unconventional public spaces across Thailand, where she is also known by her nickname Mimi. THE NATION/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
