Myint Swe’s Distinctive Works on Show at Rangoon’s Pansodan Scene

By The Irrawaddy 18 September 2015

RANGOON — The third installment of Pansodan Scene’s exhibition series featuring first-time Burmese solo artists opens on Friday, with works by the reclusive Myint Swe.

The gallery’s curator, Su Htwe Aung, said the 60-year-old Arakan State-born artist was rarely sighted in person around Rangoon’s flourishing art scene, evidently preferring to let his distinctive paintings speak for themselves.

Myint Swe describes this series as a tribute to his foremost mentor, S Tin Shwe, who he regarded as a master at capturing the beauty of young women.

His former teacher, who has since passed away, could never freely exhibit his work due to strict censorship controls under Burma’s previous military rulers.

The abstract influences are clear in Myint Swe’s work, which is reminiscent of Cubist and Fauvist styles from early 20th century Europe, with the artist engaging bold brush strokes with a strong palette to produce large and vivid portraits of naked women.

“Myint Swe’s earlier work could best be described as abstract, under the guidance of his former teacher, S Tin Shwe,” Su Htwe Aung told The Irrawaddy.

“He then joined the monkhood and studied the Dharma for some time before re-emerging to produce this series of female nudes.”

The exhibition is open on Friday, September 18-23, from 10am to 6pm daily. The Pansodan Scene is located on the second floor, at 144 Pansodan Street, Rangoon.