CREDITS:
Illustration of Mit Jai Inn by Maria Chen
ALL WORKS: ©Mit Jai Inn
Mit Jai Inn’s artistry defies boundaries, blending rich layers of colour, tactile forms, and deeply personal narratives shaped by his Thai heritage and global influences. In this conversation with CNTRFLD.ART, Mit reflects on his upbringing in Chiang Mai, his transformative years in Vienna working with Franz West, and his evolution as an artist deeply engaged with social and political themes. From his hands-on creative process to his role in founding pivotal initiatives like Chiang Mai Social Installation, Mit offers profound insights into his practice, the interplay between art and community, and his vision for the future.
CNTRFLD. Your work reflects a profound connection to your upbringing and heritage. How did growing up in Chiang Mai shape your creative perspective and your approach to art?
MJI. On one side, the sensory markers of my hometown, full of temples, crafts and rice fields, have impacted my aesthetics, but on the other side, maybe as a contrary reaction, it provoked a restlessness and agitation since I was very young.
CNTRFLD. Can you share what motivated you to pursue art and how you chose painting as your primary medium, especially given its unconventional, tactile, and layered nature in your practice?
MJI. Painting and sculpting have always been the only things I could do. It is my karma to do what I do and how I do it. It seems like I reincarnate in art thousands of lifetimes. Again, and again…
CNTRFLD. Your time in Vienna, particularly working with Franz West, was pivotal in your career. How did studying and creating art in Europe influence your artistic journey and your perception of global art practices?
MJI. That period showed me both the possibilities and the failures of art and life in this unfinished project we call Modernism.
CNTRFLD. You mentioned that it’s only recently you have been able to earn a living as an artist. What
challenges did you face earlier in your career, and how did you sustain yourself during those years?
MJI. I also don’t fully understand how I was able to survive those times. As many young artists it was a struggle, but I was lucky in having my peers around me to bounce the smell of the stupidity of the contemporary zeitgeist.
CNTRFLD. As a co-founder of initiatives like Chiang Mai Social Installation and Cartel Artspace, how have you balanced your socially engaged projects with your individual artistic practice?
MJI. The only way I found to balance all of this, is with the help and involvement of other people.
CNTRFLD. Your current work is featured in the Asia Pacific Triennial at Queensland Art Gallery. Can you tell us about the themes or ideas you are exploring in this exhibition?
MJI. How to revolve around the existing structure and the natural light reaching the inner space.
CNTRFLD. Your pieces often invite public interaction and reinterpretation. How do you view the relationship between your art and the audience, especially when the works are perceived as “public objects”?
MJI. The object in itself has no meaning, but my aim is for it to become a sort of catalyst for exchange and interplay with the observer.
CNTRFLD. Looking forward, do you have any upcoming projects or exhibitions you’re particularly excited about? How do you envision your practice evolving in the coming years?
MJI. We are working hard for the second edition of AMINIMAL at Maielie that was initiated last year by Andreas Reiter Raabe, Giles Ryder and myself. We want to bring AMINIMAL each year to a different city and include more and more artist for each show. Also, other shows in Singapore, Hong Kong and Korea that will be soon announced.
CNTRFLD. Having spent decades challenging traditional boundaries of art, what advice would you give to aspiring artists navigating their own paths in a rapidly changing art world?
MJI. Find your place in the struggle.
CNTRFLD. You described painting as a form of meditation and healing. How does your process of creating art contribute to your personal well-being and your vision of utopia?
MJI. In paradise you ought to do only 3 things: art, meditation, and healing.
About the artist.
Mit Jai Inn (b. 1960, Chiang Mai, Thailand; lives and works in Chiang Mai) creates richly layered, colour-based works that challenge traditional boundaries of the medium. Working in his outdoor Chiang Mai studio, Mit employs sunlight, moonlight, and fluorescent illumination to develop his works, which often reflect Thailand's shifting political and cultural landscape.
His process is deeply physical, involving hand-crushed pigments, palette knives, and fingers to create canvases treated on both sides. These works transcend aesthetic traditions, responding to histories of Western and Eastern art and addressing social and political themes. His pieces evolve site-specifically, with variations in colour, scale, and texture, such as neon dots, pastel stripes, and amorphous forms.
Mit studied at Silpakorn University in Bangkok before attending Vienna's Academy of Arts (1986–1992), where he worked with Franz West. In Vienna, he developed his distinctive style of unstretched, touchable, two-sided paintings, often displayed in public spaces and used as trade objects. Early series like Free Flyers and Wall Works introduced participatory and modular concepts, while later works such as Scrolls and Tables explored communal and performative themes.
Since returning to Thailand in 1992, Mit has co-founded pivotal initiatives like Chiang Mai Social Installation and The Land Foundation, fostering socially engaged art. He also founded Cartel Artspace in 2015 and co-initiated the independent Bangkok Biennale in 2017, providing platforms for critical reflections on Thailand's political and cultural dynamics.
Mit Jai Inn’s artistry defies boundaries, blending rich layers of colour, tactile forms, and deeply personal narratives shaped by his Thai heritage and global influences. In this conversation with CNTRFLD.ART, Mit reflects on his upbringing in Chiang Mai, his transformative years in Vienna working with Franz West, and his evolution as an artist deeply engaged with social and political themes. From his hands-on creative process to his role in founding pivotal initiatives like Chiang Mai Social Installation, Mit offers profound insights into his practice, the interplay between art and community, and his vision for the future.
CNTRFLD. Your work reflects a profound connection to your upbringing and heritage. How did growing up in Chiang Mai shape your creative perspective and your approach to art?
MJI. On one side, the sensory markers of my hometown, full of temples, crafts and rice fields, have impacted my aesthetics, but on the other side, maybe as a contrary reaction, it provoked a restlessness and agitation since I was very young.
CNTRFLD. Can you share what motivated you to pursue art and how you chose painting as your primary medium, especially given its unconventional, tactile, and layered nature in your practice?
MJI. Painting and sculpting have always been the only things I could do. It is my karma to do what I do and how I do it. It seems like I reincarnate in art thousands of lifetimes. Again, and again…
CNTRFLD. Your time in Vienna, particularly working with Franz West, was pivotal in your career. How did studying and creating art in Europe influence your artistic journey and your perception of global art practices?
MJI. That period showed me both the possibilities and the failures of art and life in this unfinished project we call Modernism.
CNTRFLD. You mentioned that it’s only recently you have been able to earn a living as an artist. What
challenges did you face earlier in your career, and how did you sustain yourself during those years?
MJI. I also don’t fully understand how I was able to survive those times. As many young artists it was a struggle, but I was lucky in having my peers around me to bounce the smell of the stupidity of the contemporary zeitgeist.
CNTRFLD. As a co-founder of initiatives like Chiang Mai Social Installation and Cartel Artspace, how have you balanced your socially engaged projects with your individual artistic practice?
MJI. The only way I found to balance all of this, is with the help and involvement of other people.
CNTRFLD. Your current work is featured in the Asia Pacific Triennial at Queensland Art Gallery. Can you tell us about the themes or ideas you are exploring in this exhibition?
MJI. How to revolve around the existing structure and the natural light reaching the inner space.
CNTRFLD. Your pieces often invite public interaction and reinterpretation. How do you view the relationship between your art and the audience, especially when the works are perceived as “public objects”?
MJI. The object in itself has no meaning, but my aim is for it to become a sort of catalyst for exchange and interplay with the observer.
CNTRFLD. Looking forward, do you have any upcoming projects or exhibitions you’re particularly excited about? How do you envision your practice evolving in the coming years?
MJI. We are working hard for the second edition of AMINIMAL at Maielie that was initiated last year by Andreas Reiter Raabe, Giles Ryder and myself. We want to bring AMINIMAL each year to a different city and include more and more artist for each show. Also, other shows in Singapore, Hong Kong and Korea that will be soon announced.
CNTRFLD. Having spent decades challenging traditional boundaries of art, what advice would you give to aspiring artists navigating their own paths in a rapidly changing art world?
MJI. Find your place in the struggle.
CNTRFLD. You described painting as a form of meditation and healing. How does your process of creating art contribute to your personal well-being and your vision of utopia?
MJI. In paradise you ought to do only 3 things: art, meditation, and healing.
About the artist.
Mit Jai Inn (b. 1960, Chiang Mai, Thailand; lives and works in Chiang Mai) creates richly layered, colour-based works that challenge traditional boundaries of the medium. Working in his outdoor Chiang Mai studio, Mit employs sunlight, moonlight, and fluorescent illumination to develop his works, which often reflect Thailand's shifting political and cultural landscape.
His process is deeply physical, involving hand-crushed pigments, palette knives, and fingers to create canvases treated on both sides. These works transcend aesthetic traditions, responding to histories of Western and Eastern art and addressing social and political themes. His pieces evolve site-specifically, with variations in colour, scale, and texture, such as neon dots, pastel stripes, and amorphous forms.
Mit studied at Silpakorn University in Bangkok before attending Vienna's Academy of Arts (1986–1992), where he worked with Franz West. In Vienna, he developed his distinctive style of unstretched, touchable, two-sided paintings, often displayed in public spaces and used as trade objects. Early series like Free Flyers and Wall Works introduced participatory and modular concepts, while later works such as Scrolls and Tables explored communal and performative themes.
Since returning to Thailand in 1992, Mit has co-founded pivotal initiatives like Chiang Mai Social Installation and The Land Foundation, fostering socially engaged art. He also founded Cartel Artspace in 2015 and co-initiated the independent Bangkok Biennale in 2017, providing platforms for critical reflections on Thailand's political and cultural dynamics.
CREDITS:
Illustration of Mit Jai Inn by Maria Chen
ALL WORKS: ©Mit Jai Inn