Tapong Chin

Artist

Christian Develter

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Inspiration, Colour and Characters

Internationally acclaimed artist Christian Develter makes a post pandemic splash in the UK with the opening of his first solo exhibition at Molasses House.

Christian Develter, a "global nomad", born in 1968 in Blankenberge, Belgium, has resided and worked in Asia since the mid-nineties and now calls Cambodia home with a purpose-built studio nestled amongst the paddy fields in Siem Reap home of the iconic Angkor Wat temple.

Christian uses oils as an instrument to portray his rich experiences of people and cultures around the world. As a highly versatile artist whose work pushes boundaries, he believes that despite cultural differences and starkly different socio-realities, there are moments that can be appreciated by everyone. These moments are the trigger of his inspiration.

Christian’s sense of beauty and the individual strength and spirit of his characters is developed through careful consideration of line, lighting and geometry as well as his insightful awareness of the power of colour to reveal that which is behind the surface of each character. At the heart of these works is a search not just for physical beauty but also for something of the spirit that embraces and motivates each one in our era of hyper celebrity.

The uniqueness of Christian’s work lies in his radical choice for strong colours and mixture of oils and acrylics usually preferring to combine them with bold shapes. His works are deeply powerful and compelling in the way they capture light and space in translating the artist’s desire to create large iconic works.

The exhibition will feature original works and limited edition lithographs from the Chin Series. A bold and vibrant collection depicting the little known Chin people from northern Myanmar. Obtaining permission for the Myanmar military junta, Christian gained exclusive access to the area, enabling him to embed himself in the culture of this little known people. Christian’s bold and vivid interpretation of the Chin people and the infamous tattooed ladies gives an insight into the historical use of tattooing as an early cosmetic treatment still used to this day by the latest generation. Beauty and vibrancy goes hand in hand with Christian’s work is clear to see from his interpretation of these kind and gentle people living in a remote region of Mynamar.

‘Chin Series’ Inspiration

The inspiration for this body of work comes from the intricately tattooed faces of the Chin women located in the North-Western region of Myanmar. In 2012, Develter travelled this region extensively and visited the remote tribes of the Chin region, in which this series is entitled. Each painting from this series is named after a village or area within the Chin region. The concept behind the works being the modern Asian face of today, overlayed with the tribal tattoos of where we have come from - grounding us back to our cultural roots and heritage. This striking collection of work is an invitation to explore the artist’s contemporary narrative of evolving cultures through his district creative style.

The Chin tribe and their tattoos are relatively unknown to the outside world. These tribes in north-western Myanmar (Chin and Rakhine State) to this day use tattoo facial markings that is a centuries old tradition to distinguish one hill tribe from another along with their marital status and social ranking. Together with the Derung tribe in Southwest China’s Yunnan province, they are the only other tribe known to adhere to this traditional ancient practice. Both tribes are believed to be from the same Indo- Tibetan lineage.

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