Mark Sweetland, also known by the moniker SAMEBOAT©, is a Canadian award-winning, internationally recognized contemporary artist based in South East Asia. His artwork has been exhibited and sold all over the world. He is the son of renowned Toronto illustrator and commercial artist Jim Sweetland (also known in the art world as King James). Mark is self-taught. After a solo journey through South East Asia, he relocated to Thailand in 2005 where he earned his Bachelor of Arts with highest honours at IIS-RU in Bangkok. He speaks Thai fluently, and also taught himself to read and write the language. In 2013, Mark became the first non-Thai national to receive the prestigious Silpathorn Award from Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn for a series of artwork on His Majesty King Bhumibol the Great. In 2017, Mark received the Jean-Michel Basquiat Prize for outstanding achievements in Art. Among his most famous works are ‘Fermat’s Spiral’, currently on display at the Saatchi Gallery in London, and ‘King Bhumibol The Great’, which set a record at auction in 2017 and is now in the private collection of Yusaku Maezawa. He founded the SAMEBOAT© art movement in 2018 and is credited with inventing the ‘chawp’ technique. Mark has also had a successful career in teaching and mentoring. He holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (International) with merit from The University of Nottingham, and for the past several years has been teaching Art at an international school in Thailand where he has settled down with his Chinese wife, Dao (a.k.a. ‘The Dao’), who also acts as his personal art director, and isn’t actually Chinese. He has a studio in Bangkok and is currently working on a series of projects with Journey Inland™. The SAMEBOAT© X Journey Inland™ collaboration titled ‘What Difference Does It Make?’ is scheduled for exhibition at the BACC in March of 2024.
