Paw Thame

Paw Thame (1948–2014) was a Burmese-American painter and one of the central figures of the modernist art movement in Burma during the 1970s and early 1980s. Born in Shwebo, he was largely self-taught, developing his practice through informal study with the pioneer modernists Aung Khin and Kin Maung (Bank), before moving to Rangoon, where he co-founded the Peacock Gallery in 1976 with sculptor Sonny Nyein — the first gallery in Burma devoted entirely to modern art. His circle included Win Pe, Kin Maung Yin, and Bagyi Aung Soe, artists now regarded as the founding generation of Burmese modernism.

Paw Thame emigrated to the United States in 1984, settling initially in Hawaii before moving to the mainland. His memoir I Am Cadmium Red (2010), edited by the Burmese writer Ma Thanegi, is regarded as an important primary document in the history of Burmese modernism.

Early life Paw Thame was born in 1948 in Shwebo, Burma. He graduated from Mandalay University. He subsequently attempted to enroll at the Mandalay School of Fine Arts, but the school was unable to accommodate his need for evening classes; the school's dean directed him to the studio of Aung Khin (1921–1996), one of the foundational figures of Burmese modernism.

Artistic Style During the 1960s, Paw Thame was drawn above all to the graphic quality he observed in the work of Win Pe and Kin Maung (Bank): solid colors, flat planes and clean lines. Into the 1970s, his paintings showed a consistent inclination toward the reduction of natural forms into geometric structures — an approach rooted in Cézanne's premise to 'treat nature by the cylinder, the sphere, the cone'. Certain works from the middle of the 1970s continue to display close stylistic affinities with the works of Win Pe, Kin Maung (Bank) and Paw Oo Thet. He was a master of both perpendicular and curved lines.

I Am Cadmium Red I Am Cadmium Red (2010) is Paw Thame's memoir, based on email exchanges with Chris Dodge, a patron friend and art dealer, in late 2008 and early 2009, subsequently edited into book form by the Burmese writer Ma Thanegi. Written in the first person, it offers the artist's perspectives on his life, his friendships, and his understanding of modernism in the context of Burmese art.