Memory of gold, memory of silk

Tiao Nithakhong Somsanith, a descendant of the vice-royal branch of the former monarchy of Luang Prabang in Laos, was initiated from childhood onward into the arts of the royal court and especially into embroidery with gold thread, which was one of its chief ornaments. The embroiderer bears witness to the technical and symbolic richness of his art and to his dual struggle both to preserve a unique heritage and to rebuild his own life in exile, through this work of memory.