Montien BOONMA
Thailand 1953–2000


The artist installing Lotus sound 1992
First Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art 1993
Queensland Art Gallery
Photograph: Christabelle Baranay

Montien Boonma
Lotus sound 1992
Terracotta, gilded wood
300 x 350 x 300cm
The Kenneth and Yasuko Myer Collection of Contemporary Asian Art
Purchased 1993 with funds from The Myer Foundation, Michael Myer and Ann Gamble Myer through the Queensland Art Gallery Foundation
Collection: Queensland Art Gallery
Photograph: Matthew Kassay


Montien Boonma was born in 1953 in Bangkok, Thailand, where he died in 2000. Through his sculptures and installations, Boonma looked to internal, local and philosophical sources as a means of exploring the significance of the transcendental. As a devout Buddhist, his work engaged profoundly with meditations on the relationship between the material and non-material aspects of life. Montien Boonma is one of the most significant artists to emerge from South-East Asia in the late twentieth century.

More information about the artist



Montien Boonma
Salas for the mind 1995
Steel, graphite
4 units: 270 x 100 x 100cm each
Collection: Estate of Montien Boonma, Bangkok

Montien Boonma
Black altar 1995
Aluminium, graphite and herbs
120 x 480 x 100cm
The Kenneth and Yasuko Myer Collection of Contemporary Asian Art. Purchased 2000 with funds from The Myer Foundation. A project of the Sidney Myer Centenary Celebration 1899–1999
Gift through the Queensland Art Gallery Foundation
Collection: Queensland Art Gallery
Photograph: Matthew Kassay


Montien Boonma’s art bridges the gap between Thailand’s traditional culture and contemporary life. His works draw inspiration from South-East Asian architectural forms such as salas (pavilions), stupas (Buddhist reliquary monuments) and wats (Buddhist monastery complexes). Boonma uses traditional motifs and organic materials to create works that are sanctuaries for contemplation and self-reflection in the modern world.



Montien Boonma
Arokhayasala: Temple of the mind 1996
Steel, aluminium and herbs
370 x 250 x 250cm
Collection: Acacia Fine Art Ltd, Bangkok
Photograph: Matthew Kassay

Montien Boonma
Arokhayasala: Temple of the mind (detail) 1996
Steel, aluminium and herbs
370 x 250 x 250cm
Collection: Acacia Fine Art Ltd, Bangkok
Photograph: Matthew Kassay

The aluminium and steel surfaces of Black altar 1995 and Arokhayasala: Temple of the mind 1996 are smeared with traditional Thai medicinal herbs. These herbs envelop the viewer with their gentle aroma, triggering the senses and creating a space for physical and spiritual healing. The elegant and precarious arrangement of hand-made terracotta bells comprising Lotus sound 1992 evokes sounds associated with meditation and prayer and suggests contemplation of the visible and the invisible.

This artist is featured in the Education Resource Kit.

List of works in APT 2002


Artists and Works
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