Tang Contemporary Art is pleased to announce the representation of Thai artist ERTHH and will present his solo exhibition “Petit Genre” at our Bangkok space on June 7.  Born in 2000 in Bangkok, ERTHH demonstrates artistic maturity beyond his years through vibrant pop-surrealist works that offer fresh perspectives. His paintings feature “Cheek,” a character reflecting his personal journey—though depicted with serene composure, this figure embodies the artist’s own emotional landscapes, with each detail concealing untold narratives.

“​​Lately I’ve come to value the importance of learning through life itself. I used to believe that age wasn’t a measure of wisdom, anyone who was curious and eager to learn could grow to understand the world more deeply than someone older. But as I grew up, I realized there are things that no amount of reading or studying can teach me. That thing is experience.

Life teaches us through events we can’t find in any book. Each day brings a deeper understanding of the world and the people around us. Mistakes, achievements, the good and the bad all become lessons stored within us.

I’ve started to understand that the version of myself today will never be wiser than the version of myself in the future, because every experience adds perspective. It helps me see more clearly, decide more carefully, and respond more wisely. And none of that comes without living through it. I think we never stop learning and what we go through in life shapes who we become.”

——ERTHH

Social behaviors within everyday practice follow specific discursive rules that govern how people process objects and their symbols, while daily culture itself cleverly uses its own surface as a curtain, obscuring the pluralistic contexts, inherent qualities, and sociohistorical foundations underpinning its operations. As visual footnotes to globalization, ERTHH’s works create spatial interventions at the threshold between objects and humanity. His studio resembles Baudrillard’s “museum of simulacra,” where enlarged cartoon toys, snack packaging, and replicated art sculptures form an archaeology of memory. The recurrent motif of wide-eyed Asian children in ERTHH’s oeuvre functions as potent visual symbols.

On ERTHH’s cognitive journey from “painting as play” to worldmaking, each viewer becomes the cartoon child—milk teeth still hidden beneath business suits. His works remind us: those glowing pebbles scattered along the path may one day become existential coordinates in turbulent seas. In this sense, daily practice breaks free from being a “structured structure”—its fluid fragments suddenly developing into latent “deities of resistance” hiding in life’s folds. Their divinity lies not in grand manifestos but in humble gestures that anchor existential resilience within objectification’s cracks, puncturing homogeneity’s dome to reveal glimmers of alternative possibilities.

Text: Shiying Wang

Opening Reception
June 7, 2025 | Saturday 4:00 PM

Venue
Tang Contemporary Art Bangkok 

Artist
ERTHH

Exhibition Dates
June 7 – July 13, 2025

Gallery Hours
Tuesday – Sunday |  11 AM – 7 PM

Website
https://www.tangcontemporary.com

Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/tangcontemporaryart/

Contact
bkk@tangcontemporary.com

About Artist

ERTHH (Thanathorn Phattaratada)
b.2000, Bangkok, Thailand

Thanathorn Phattarathada, better known as ERTHH, graduated from the Faculty of Decorative Arts at Silpakorn University in 2022.

ERTHH is inspired by Thai master, Prateep Kochabua, known for his surrealist paintings, as well as inspired by his study and interest in Caravaggio’s use of light and shadow, frequently experimenting with techniques of chiaroscuro.  He practiced still life compositions and then gradually started to integrate elements of his upbringing and passion for cartoons and illustrations, eventually forming his unique style and canvases.

Young and energetic, while exuding an air of maturity beyond his age, ERTHH creates pop surrealist paintings with a fresh take, illustrating a character that reflects on his own learning experiences.  Though the boy “Cheek” is expressed in a calm and quiet manner, he represents both the artist’s highs and lows.  Beneath each detail is a story that is waiting to be unfolded.

About Tang Contemporary Art

Since its founding in Bangkok in 1997, Tang Contemporary Art has opened 8 spaces in Beijing, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Seoul and Singapore to promote the development of experimental art in different regions. In the past 27 years, Tang Contemporary Art has organized groundbreaking exhibitions in its gallery spaces, and also cooperated with important art institutions in China and abroad to accomplish outstanding art projects. The gallery strives to initiate dialogue between artists, curators, collectors and institutions working both locally and internationally. A roster of groundbreaking exhibitions has earned Tang Contemporary Art internationally renowned recognition, establishing its status as a pioneer of the contemporary art scene in Asia. 

As one of China’s most influential contemporary art platforms, Tang Contemporary Art maintains a high standard of exhibition programming. Tang Contemporary Art represents or collaborates with leading figures in international contemporary art, including Ai Weiwei, Huang Yongping, Shen Yuan, Zhu Jinshi, Chen Danqing, Liu Qinghe, Liu Xiaodong, Chen Shaoxiong, Wang Yuping, Shen Ling, Shen Liang, Wu Yi, Xia Xiaowan, He Duoling, Mao Xuhui, Wang Huangsheng, Yang Jiechang, Tan Ping, Wang Du，Yan Lei, Yue Minjun, Wang Jianwei, Yangjiang Group, Zheng Guogu, Lin Yilin, Sun Yuan&Peng Yu, Qin Ga, Wang Qingsong, Yin Zhaoyang, Feng Yan, Guo Wei, Chen Wenbo, Ling Jian, Qin Qi, Yang Yong, Peng Wei, He An, Zhao Zhao, Xu Qu, Chen Yujun, Chen Yufan, Xue Feng, Cai Lei, Li Qing, Wang Sishun, Xu Xiaoguo, Lí Wei, Liu Yujia, Wu Wei, Yang Bodu, You Yong, Li Erpeng, Jade Ching-yuk Ng, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Adel Abdessemed, Niki de Saint Phalle, AES+F , Michael Zelehosk, Jonas Burgert, Christian Lemmerz, Michael Kvium, Sakarin Krue-On, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Natee Utarit, Kitti Narod, Gongkan, Entang Wiharso, Heri Dono, Nam June Paik, Park Seungmo, Jae Yong Kim, Diren Lee, Dinh Q. Lê, Rodel Tapaya, Jigger Cruz, Ayka Go, Raffy Napay, H.H.Lim, Etsu Egami, etc.

(Text and images courtesy of Tang Contemporary Art)