Living in a Box: Pitchapa Wangprasertkul for Mothering/Unmothering

02FeB2026

For Mothering/Unmothering, Pitchapa Wangprasertkul’s The Standard portrays resilience through the body’s slow adaptation to a glass enclosure

In The Standard, Pitchapa Wangprasertkul positions herself inside a glass case mounted on an industrial push cart, navigating the tension between visibility and confinement. The work references both the display mechanisms of contemporary art fairs and the cramped, highly regulated spaces of family homes, particularly in the Philippines. By recreating a labourer’s environment with only the bare necessities, the durational performance highlights societal “standards” imposed by authorities or structural systems—ranging from minimal living spaces to curtailed rest—that shape daily life and endurance.

Originally presented at the Bangkok Art Biennale 2022, The Standard is now recontextualised for the Philippine setting, inviting audiences to reflect on domestic and social pressures, resilience, and the boundaries between care, labour, and survival. Within the thematic framework of Mothering/Unmothering, the work resonates with the negotiation of constraint, expectation, and endurance in domestic spaces and relational care.

Interview Vanini Belarmino
Images Pitchapa Wangprasertkul