Bart Was Not Here (aka Kyaw Moe Khine) was tempted by the tags and the bubble letters painted on the streets, growing up in Yangon. He began ‘experimenting’ with spray cans in the 8th grade. He gave himself the alias “Bart Was Not Here” after the character in The Simpsons, alluding to the tongue-in-cheek quality in his artworks. Inspired by artists like Hieronymous Bosch, Frank Stella and Louise Nevelson, Bart’s expressions in his art on or off the walls are a mix of text and image juxtaposing Burmese and imported cultural norms. He graduated in Fine Arts from Lasalle College of the Arts, Singapore in 2018. In May 2019, Bart debuted his first solo exhibition ‘God Complex’ at Myanm/art. Bart has done a number of freelance collaborations with major brands like AIA, Bosch, Tiger Beer etc. He has participated in several Street Art and Pop Art exhibitions in Yangon and now works as a full-time artist at PlayGround Studio.
“Bart Was Not Here (aka Kyaw Moe Khine) worked from his studio to embolden the joiners of CDM through his work. He used easily recognized cultural symbols like the pyit taing htaung doll, a traditional toy in Myanmar. With its curved underside, it can never truly be knocked down - it always gets back up. He dressed it in protest gear, mimicking the brave front liners of the protests, who risk their lives in the name of democracy.“
