Patana Canvases: Unveiling the Artistic Practices of Our Community
About this ebook
This book is part of a wider research project led by Purnima Ruanglertbutr, TAPs project Researcher and Curator. It features reflective statements from the artists, exploring the concepts behind their work and the impact of the TAPs programme, alongside Ruanglertbutr’s research report, ‘The Power of Creative Practice in Education’. This report synthesises survey and artists’ reflection findings to reveal the transformative effects of art-making on the well-being, teaching and working practices, and school culture of educators and professionals in education.
The Teachers as Arts Practitioners (TAPs) exhibition reveals how fostering creative practice enhances pedagogy, strengthens community connections, reinvigorates passion-led teaching and work, nurtures artistic confidence, encourages cross-disciplinary connections, and fosters a vibrant community of creative practitioners. Through reflections, case studies, and research insights, this exhibition examines the ‘artist-teacher’ phenomenon and the role of creativity in education, inviting educators, school leaders, artists, and arts advocates to explore the potential of creative practice in shaping individuals, international schools and communities while inspiring a dynamic learning environment. Highlighting the transformative power of creativity, this research exhibition catalogue is a must-read for anyone passionate about the arts in education.
Participating artists include:
Amanda Fielding
Areeluck (Nina) Songsirikul
Arunee Sribhibhadh
Christopher Ferne
Cindy Adair
Coke Smith
Duangporn Turongratanachai
Grace Chen
Ian McDonald
Pimpakarn (Jam) Abhinoraseth
Kate McClenaghan
Kullakan Iamthadanai (Khru Pu)
Leafy Yan
Marie-Claire Redman
Mark Lanzuela
Martin Gadgil
Noppanat (Warm) Poyu
Purnima Ghogar Ruanglertbutr
Rattanachai Phangsa
Richard Kirtland
Romeu Rita Afonso De Barros
Rosie Brown
Rosemary Marshall
Ross Corker
Sathita (Waree) Kitcharoenthumrong
Sharon Marie Godfrey
Sneha Rebecca Mathew
Susan Jane Perks
Tasneem Poonevala
Tidarat (GungGaew) Tonasut
Weerapol Moundej
About the author
Purnima Ruanglertbutr is an internationally recognised artist–teacher–researcher whose career bridges education and the arts, championing creative practice in education and advocating for community building through the arts. An award-winning Australian-Thai author, poet, writer, and artist, she teaches Secondary English Language and Literature and leads school-based spoken word poetry programmes. She is also the founder, curator, researcher, and project lead of the Teachers as Practitioners (TAPs) Project. Her TEDx talk, ‘Who am I – Artist, Teacher or Both?’, explores her teacher-as-practitioner identity.
Purnima brings a global and interdisciplinary approach to her teaching, shaped by experience in Australia, the UK, and Thailand. She has taught English Language and Literature across Key Stage 3, (I)GCSE, and the IB Diploma Programme for more than a decade. Her passion for integrating art into education stems from roles as a museum educator at the National Gallery of Victoria and the Ian Potter Museum of Art, where she developed inclusive educational resources and led writing workshops promoting cultural diversity and accessibility.
She is the author of Inspired English: Creative Writing and Critical Thinking Through Art (Macmillan Education), and has published widely in international journals, magazines, and newspapers. As a content writer, she produces educational materials for diverse learners, and as a creative writer, her poetry and nonfiction appear in publications such as The Melbourne Review, Arts Hub Australia, Indian Link, and Expat Weekend Thailand.
As a performance poet, Purnima has featured at the National Poetry Library and Whitecross Street Festival in London, the ASEAN Youth Forum, and International Women’s Day events. She regularly runs creative writing workshops for children, teens, and adults.
Her visual art practice—shaped by her Indian and Thai heritage—spans photography, painting, printmaking, and illustrated poetry, with exhibitions and curatorial work showcased internationally. A published researcher, her peer-reviewed work on arts-based pedagogies, museum education, and visual literacy appears in journals such as Australian Art Education, English Australia, and The Canadian Review of Art Education. She has lectured at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, co-led the Teacher as Artmaker Project, and taught the postgraduate course Teaching and Artistic Practice. She also served as Manager of the AAANZ 'Inter-discipline' conference and Editorial Assistant for the Journal of Artistic and Creative Education.
She holds a Bachelor of Creative Arts (Honours) and Master of Teaching (Secondary) from the University of Melbourne, and a Master of Art Administration from the University of New South Wales.
