This artwork was created based on the artist’s experiences when he stayed in Akakura Village in 2015, and the people he met there. Given that the venue was a former elementary school at the heart of the community, the artist drew inspiration from Raphael’s famous fresco, The School of Athens within the Vatican, to portray not ancient Greek philosophers, but the people of Akakura Village across different eras. Navin, who experienced the nature and lifestyle of the people in the mountain village, rendered the work in shades of red (aka), inspired by the name of the village, Akakura, in reflecting the village identity. Furthermore, letters he wrote for the village residents were adapted into a short video. The letters blended stories of the community and families, gathered through interviews of the local people, with Navin’s own life narrative. They were read by the people of the village, and the recordings were used as the narration for the video.
A new twin painting of the 2015 piece painted in shades of red was completed in 2022. It was painted amid the global pandemic in 2021, in the artist’s hometown of Chaing Mai in Thailand, centered on the local people and landscape. It was displayed on the back of the semicircular object that housed the 2015 painting, creating a space inside the gymnasium that symbolically bridged Akakura and Chiang Mai.
Then in 2024, the 2015 painting of the people of Akakura, and the 2022 painting (copy) of the people of Chiang Mai were displayed under the cherry tree in the school playground. The creation of these works provided the artist with an opportunity to reflect on his life, and the meaning of being an artist. The original piece created in 2021 was moved to his studio in Chiang Mai, forming a connection between Akakura Village and his own life.
Materials: Mixed media
Sponsor: Holbein Art Materials Co.