Mue Bon: Bangkok's own street artist

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Mue Bon is a Bangkok-based street artist who works in painting, installation, and mixed media. As a member of Thailand’s early generation of street artists, Mue Bon began painting at a time when street art in his country was neither well known nor respected. Without creative agencies, big brands, or fine art galleries seeking out their skills, street artists were left with little financial incentive to continue their work. Regardless, Mue Bon continued creating work in the streets, motivated by his desire to elevate the status of street art in his country by making art accessible to the public.

Mue Bon是曼谷的街头艺术家，作品包括绘画、装置艺术和混合媒体作品。作为泰国早期一批的街头艺术家，Mue Bon刚开始创作时，泰国的街头艺术还不是很流行，也不是很受人们尊重。当时没有创意机构、大品牌或是美术画廊需要街头艺术，因此，街头艺术家的经济收入很低，很多人都没有动力继续创作。但Mue Bon一直坚持创作街头艺术至今，因为他希望通过向公众展示自己的作品，提升街头艺术在泰国的地位。

As street art became more popular in Thailand, businesses began to see commercial opportunities for street art collaborations. An impressive art piece on the wall meant that more customers and tourists would be attracted to the place of business. Mue Bon says, “The business owners would become curators too. They felt that, in a sense, this artwork belonged to them as well, because it was on their property. So they would be able to talk to their customers about street art, the artist, and the story behind the artwork. Even the lady selling fried bananas on the corner would become a street art curator.”

随着街头艺术在泰国越来越流行，商家开始看到了与街头艺术合作的商业机会。当企业的墙壁上出现一幅令人印象深刻的艺术作品，也就意味着会更多的顾客和游客被吸引这里来。Mue Bon说：“企业主也会成为策展人。他们觉得，从某种意义上说，这件作品属于他们，因为那是在他们的房子上的。因此，他们能够跟顾客聊街头艺术，聊艺术家和作品背后的故事。就连是在角落里卖炸香蕉的女摊主会可以成为街头艺术的策展人。”

Over the years, Mue Bon has created a cast of signature characters that he paints on the street and the canvas, including a cartoon bird, a girl behind a mask, and Mr. TV, a man with a television screen for a face. Despite their cute appearance, all of Mue Bon’s works contain commentary on social issues, including wealth disparity and inequality, the influence of media and propaganda, and anti-war activism. His iconic Mickey Mouse skull stickers and wheatpastes are the artist’s version of a memento mori – a reminder to find peace, meaning, and a sense of humor in the face of our inevitable mortality. Today, Mue Bon’s work can be seen not only throughout Thailand but has also made its way around the world.

多年来，Mue Bon在大街的墙上和画布上创造了一系列的角色，其中包括一只卡通鸟、戴面具的女孩和电视机先生（长着电视屏幕脸的男人）。虽然这些角色看上去很可爱，但Mue Bon的所有作品都传达着他对社会问题的看法，从贫富差距到社会不平等，从媒体和政治宣传的影响力到反战行动。他标志性的米老鼠头骨贴纸和糨糊贴纸是他的 memento mori （拉丁语，意为“记住你终有一死”），提醒着他去寻求和平，生命的意义，以及面对必然的死亡时依旧保持幽默。Mue Bon的作品如今已经在泰国和世界其它国家展出。