Art of Myanmar

Burmese art is a form of visual art created by Buddhist painters from Myanmar (also known as Burma). As early as the 15th century, artisans in the primarily Buddhist country of Myanmar have been creating paintings and sculptures that celebrate Burmese culture.^[1] Burmese artists have been subjected to government interference.^[2] Many artists' works have been censored, or completely removed from public view due to political restrictions.^[2] While the situation has improved over time, government interference has hindered the development of Burmese art when compared with the rest of the world.^[2]

Central Buddhist elements are present throughout Burmese art. These include the mudra, Jataka tales, the pagoda, and Bodhisattva.^[3]

History

From 1962 to 1988, during the Cold War era, postcolonial Myanmar was closed off from the outside world as a way to secure independence.^[2] In 1989, the market reformed, which relaxed the control of the state. This allowed Myanmar's artists more opportunities to engage with international art.^[2] With the advent of internet access in 1997, the contemporary art community in Myanmar grew.^[2]

Over the years, wars and other hardships have affected artists and heavily influenced their artworks.^[2] The government has stepped in and started limiting what artists can and cannot show.^[2]

In an attempt to give the country a pure appearance to its citizens and the outside world, the government restricted art to religious depictions and what beauty the country has to offer.^[2]

Government Censorship

The Burmese government prohibited any artistic depictions of their party's history, and as a result artwork was often confiscated or banned.^[4] Any existing paintings usually depicted portraits of Ne Win, the Socialist-era, or agricultural programs which pushed Burma towards a social and economic utopia.^[4] As a way to assert its authority and mask criticism, the government censored all art exhibitions.^[4] The censorship attempted to maintain the pure nature of Burmese culture.^[4] The only uncensored artworks were images of the country’s agriculture, Buddhist imagery, and bucolic rural scenes.^[4]

The government censored artwork that it interpreted as critical of the regime.^[4] also, any artwork depicting nudity was also banned.^[4] In 1970, censors began to deface artworks with stamps that read ‘Not allowed to show’ on the front and back of the pieces.^[4] Over time, artists were even prohibited from using certain colors in their paintings.^[4]

In response, some artists defied the censorship with their art.

Notable Burmese Artists

• Win Pe Myint (Burmese: ဝင်းဖေ) (Cartoonist, Director) — Win Pe, a Burmese painter, worked as a cartoonist in the Ludu Kyi-bwa-yay Press in Mandalay.^[4] Instead of creating his usual satirical work, the press ordered Win Pe to start producing humorous cartoons for the newspaper.^[4] Under strict orders, he was to abstain from depicting any government leaders.^[4] Despite his best efforts, Win Pe’s cartoons were subjected to extensive censorship by order of the Mandalay Division army chief.^[4] After several edits, the chief stopped all cartoons being produced and fired Win Pe.^[4] In his own words, Win Pe explained that "The military wanted to be sure of themselves, their security… that there was no direct assault against them through art."^[4] His views on politics were clear; he often explained that, at the time, the ideology of the government was that it believed only in political power and had no concept of politics.^[4]
• Aung Khaing — Khaing, a semi-abstract painter, experienced the government’s belligerent censorship firsthand.^[4] In 1984 at the Bogyoke Aung San Market, Khaing attempted his first solo exhibition.^[4] During his exhibit, government censors visited him on three separate occasions.^[4] During the first few visits, the censors removed around thirty paintings they deemed inappropriate. On the final visit, all remaining artworks left on display were deemed unacceptable to be viewed.^[4] Khaing mentioned that the censors only accepted the artworks that portrayed landscapes and displayed the beauty of the country.^[4] Any and all works that seemed to illustrate the government in a negative light were unacceptable and taken down from public view.^[4] Khaing had no intentions of making any statement on the country or the government; he was directly influenced by many other artists and their painting styles, such as Gauguin and Monet.^[4] He stated that he was merely ‘copying’ their style.^[4] Nonetheless, censors assumed his abstract paintings and his depictions of deformed or thin people were ways of showing the “ugliness” of the country.^[4]

As a way to combat the censors, Khaing decided to no longer display his paintings.^[4] However, in October 2013 at the Bogyoke Aung San Market, he finally held a solo exhibit, almost 30 years later.

• Maung Theid Dhi — During a more severe period of art censorship in Burma, Maung was arrested for not complying with censors' orders to alter his artwork.^[4] In 1974, at the Wild Eye Art Exhibition in Yangon, Maung exhibited a self-portrait on wood surrounded by a metal chain. This piece was interpreted as government restriction on Burmese life.^[4] Almost immediately censors removed Maung’s work from the exhibit.^[4] The censors allowed Maung to retrieve the painting later. However, when it was returned, the work was missing the adornments it originally had.^[4] Maung later put the same piece in another exhibit, but this time, he wrapped it with leather and rope and placed it atop the skull of a deer.^[4] Soon after displaying his “new” art piece, censors arrested him without explanation and Maung spent a week in jail.^[4] After his release, Maung continued to exhibit the same piece. As a result, censors and detectives arrived at his home accusing him of creating political artworks.^[4] Several such visits caused he and his family great distress.^[4] Maung was arrested again for his “suspicious” artworks.^[4] Such distress left Maung too afraid to create paintings based on his political sketches as he originally had.^[4] but he did create paintings depicting the censors.

Burmese Art of the Shan Period

Art historians do not have an agreed-upon definition of Shan art. It is believed to have originated between 1550 and 1772 CE, which was around the time that the two kingdoms of Lanna and Lan Xang were both under the support of the Burmese.^[1]

Many pieces of Shan artwork commonly depict a Buddha in a seated position, with his right hand pointed towards the Earth; this position is commonly known as the Maravijaya Posture.^[1] In Buddhism, the Maravijaya pose represents Buddha calling the Earth Goddess to witness Gautama Shakyamuni’s victory over Mara.^[1]

Sculptures made in this art style were usually made of bronze and later would be sculpted with wood or in lacquer.^[1] Traditional Shan art typically had a Buddha with the characteristic monk's robes, or adorned with a crown and decorated with various other mediums like putty and glass.^[1]

Shan sculptures are distinctive and easily recognizable when looking through the history of Burmese Buddhist art.^[1] Shan sculptures are often identified with oval shaped faces, soft smiles, and closed relaxed eyes.^[1]

References