"When Need Moves the Earth reflects on the impact of altering the natural environment during the course of human activities such as mining or the creation of hydroelectric power. More specifically, Sutthirat Supaparinya (Som Supaparinya) presents a visual exploration of a coal mine and water dam, both of which are used to generate electricity. Her video installation combines documentary and experimental techniques to create a unique narrative of the Srinakarin Dam and the Mae Moh Lignite Mine, both sites administered by the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand. These two large-scale sites are located along or near natural active faults, which are deep or shallow fractures that give expression to the dynamic Earth.

In addition to drastically altering the landscape, coal mining and dam building are also known to be a potential cause of man-made earthquakes. Most of these are small in scale compared to the most destructive natural earthquakes, but these human interventions can influence the stress load stored in natural faults. This artwork also encourages viewers to consider our high consumption of electrical power, and proposes that communities and societies improve their sustainability planning and hazard reduction efforts." [1]

_{[1] Unearthed, Earth Observatory of Singapore, published by Singapore Art Museum, 2014.} 

A Separation of Sand and Islands was inspired by Thai environmental activists who won their protest against China's economic expansion through a trade route on the Mekong between northern Thailand and Laos in December 2017. The video was shot a few months before that. It exposes the nature of the area, which has rocks and islets. There are numerous small to large-scale international trades along the route. While farmers and fishermen survive by simple tools. Rare birds live peacefully on the islets. These will change if the activists couldn't stop the rocks and islets demolished.

In comparison, the work continues to travel on the river to the southern part of Laos, which is also has a border with northern Cambodia. It reexamines and traces the history since the end of the 19th century when the French Colonial surveyed and built transport infrastructure on the Mekong River and Khone Islands. Parallel to the contemporary issues of many hydroelectric dams constantly add on to the river made it hard for fish to travel and survive, so the same to native fishermen [2].

_{[2] Som Supaparinya, “A Separation of Sand and Islands | Som Supaparinya,” Som Supaparinya, 2018, http://atelierorange.info/portfolio/a-separation-of-sand-and-islands/.}

From the Artist:

"The Ping River is a historic route for teakwood exports (Siamese-European trade) and also an important part of my family's history. My grandparents lived along the Ping River. It was their hometown, their work and their life. My maternal grandfather once was a cargo boat trader on this route. His life was mysterious to us, since he often traveled away from home. I have followed my grandfather's route, until only upstream from the Bhumibol Dam in the Tak, until Lamphun and Chiang Mai provinces. However, since the Bhumibol Dam was built in 1958 as well as the expansion of the road network, the Ping river was blocked. Hence, the river-scape in his time and mine are completely different. The journey along, and on, the Ping River helped me to understand what my grandfather had experienced; at the same time I could observe other issues that have arisen in my time - such as the impact of electricity generation on rural communities.

In My Grandpa's Route has been forever blocked, the screen on the left invites viewers to reflect on small weirs, floodgates, and dikes lying sequentially from the source of the river to the Bhumibol Dam. While the screen on the right documents a local cruise operator on the subsequent reservoir of Ping River (Bhumibol Dam) - the creation of this huge lake saw a vast stretch of teak forest submerged under water forever.

In 2011, an enormous amount of water was released from the dam (compounded by the urgency of tropical storms), which resulted in devastating floods in central Thailand, and Bangkok. This human mismanagement was an unforgettable water disaster in Thailand.' [3]

Find out more at Som's page here.

This project was produced under Riverscape In Flux Project. Supported by Goethe Institute Bangkok.

_{[3] Som Supaparinya, “My Grandpa’s Route Has Been Forever Blocked | Som Supaparinya,” Som Supaparinya, accessed February 21, 2024, http://atelierorange.info/portfolio/my-grandpa/.}