Goat Gallery - Trystand

Trystand interview

1. What is your name and where are you from?
I’m Sarun Cheurkrung, aka TRYSTAND, a multifaceted artist based in Bangkok, Thailand, navigating the realms of illustration, animation, visual psychedelia, and painting.

2. What's your backstory? How did you end up pursuing a career in art, and how has your life journey influenced your artistic style?
I've been interested in art since college, and I've studied fine art in Bangkok all the way through my master's degree in visual art. I've been creating art, both for myself and for commission, ever since I started school. When it comes to the influence of life's journey, I believe it always changes us, shifts our perspectives, and has both positive and negative effects on our minds and thoughts. This is true at every stage of our lives, from childhood to adulthood.

3. When you're not creating art, what are some of your favorite things to do or hobbies?
I'm really into a lot of things outside of art, but they're all still art in their own way, like music, manga, movies, sci-fi novels, and philosophy. These are the big influences that have shaped my thoughts and work, both indirectly and directly, throughout my life."

4. How do you balance your personal life with your art? Any tips for fellow artists?
I'm naturally a bit of a restless soul. I can't stick with anything for too long. The best thing for me is to take a break or switch to something else. That's why I have so many hobbies that I pick up and drop over the years. I've experimented with this on myself many times. When you're bored with something, don't force yourself to do it. The work might not be bad, but you'll immediately dislike it if you have that feeling. That's what I hate about some of my own work.
Instead, take a break and do something that really captures your attention at the time. If you come across a new activity, pay attention to why you're good at it or remember the joy or passion you felt when you first started. Art is the same way. Take a break until you feel like coming back to it. Once you've had enough time to rest and come back to it with fresh eyes, go for it. The work will usually turn out well because you're really feeling it when you're working on it. I believe that when you feel something about your work, everyone else will feel it too.

5. Do you have any cool travel stories or cultural experiences that have left a mark on your art?
Traveling is one of my favorite hobbies that I can't live without. I've had so many amazing experiences, but if I had to sum it up, it's all about being in a new place every day. New places, new people, new cultures, and new stories. Those are the things that inspire my work.

6. Are there any interesting family or cultural connections to Thailand that influenced your take on the exhibition's theme?
In Thai culture, as in any nationalist culture, there has been a tendency to suppress expression in the past. This is still the case to some extent today. As I said earlier, I find it very interesting to work in a way that questions the status quo. Trying to break out of old ways of thinking can lead to rapid development, both in terms of ideas and the form of the work. When old and new elements are combined, it can create contemporary works that are like a record of the identity and way of thinking of the generation of people in this era.