Press release
In the new exhibit “Desire”, a master photographer examines the spectrum of sexual desire in our digital world
Bangkok, 10 July 2023
VS Gallery proudly presents Desire, a contemporary photographic exhibition by Ohm Phanphiroj, an internationally renowned artist whose work challenges viewers to question social norms, righteousness, and taboos.
Desire, opening 15 July, portrays sexual cravings in the digital age from two opposite perspectives: the one who desires and the one who is being desired. The artist uses photography to reveal spectrums of humans’ emotions, instincts, and desires in response to sexual urges.
Ohm interprets and displays ‘desire,’ in two intertwined bodies of work. The first part is called ‘Desejo, para Nico,’ a collection of dreamlike erotic imagery of Nico, whom the artist intimately and longingly desires and idolizes as his muse. Ohm couples the images with a poetic letter written in Portuguese, meant to be read only by Nico. In this regard, the viewers serve as voyeurs peering into intimate moments of how the artist expresses his own desire in a physical space that elicit emotional responses.
The second part is called ‘Gina’s Journey,’ a photographic-based social experiment that raises complex questions about how heterosexual males might desire someone outside of their norms, and what they might be willing to do for a chance encounter with a person they deem desirable. Here, the artist creates an avatar named “Gina”, who dresses as a beautiful woman and offers himself as an object of desire to men who want to experiment for the first time with a female-looking person, but one who has male genitalia. In return, those men, hoping to be chosen, send in their explicit nude pictures along with name, age, height, weight, and sexual orientation. If selected, a meeting with “Gina” will be arranged and their fantasies will be fulfilled.
Although the project is straightforward, it offers a disturbing look into the rituals of online hook-ups and the extent of what straight men are willing to go and send explicit details of themselves to a complete stranger, all in the name of Desire.
Desire, a contemporary art exhibition by Ohm Phanphiroj will open on July 15th and runs through August 23, 2023 at VS Gallery in Bangkok. An opening ceremony with the artist present will take place on Saturday, July 15th, 2023 from 5 to 8 pm.
Please note: Some age-restricted images will be located on the upstairs level, and are not viewable to visitors under 18 years of age
About the artist
Ohm Phanphiroj is an international award-winning photographer, filmmaker, and educator.
Ohm’s works deal with controversial issues including sexuality, identity, gender roles, human mistreatment, exploitation, and the contemporary male nude. A former fashion director at Esquire and Qr magazine, Ohm’s professional experiences include his work as a gallery director, fashion photographer, filmmaker, legal consultant, and a professor.
Ohm holds six graduate degrees: an MFA in Film, Video, New Media, Animation from the Art Institute of Chicago; an MFA in Imaging Arts from Rochester Institute of Technology; an MFA in Photography from Memphis College of Art; an MA in Filmmaking from Georgia State University; an MA in Communication from the University of Northern Iowa; and a law degree from Thammasat University, Thailand.
Ohm has participated in more than one hundred exhibitions internationally, including the Verona Grenze Arsenal Fotografici 2018, Iran Biennale 2016, Moscow Biennale 2014, Noorderlicht International Photo Festival 2012, Sommerblut Art Festival 2011, Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art, The Kinsey Institute, Bangkok Cultural Museum, Tally Beck Contemporary of Art, and H Gallery.
About VS Gallery:
VS Gallery is located at 2198, 10-11 Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra Rd, Chong Nonsi, Yan Nawa, Bangkok. The gallery is open Wednesday – Sunday from 12:30 until 18:00.
Follow VS Gallery on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VSGalleryBangkok/
For more information contact:
TQPR Thailand
Tom Van Blarcom, tom@tqpr.com
Nuie Titichayapon, nuie@tqpr.com, +662 260 5820