One grain at a time: Cambodian artist showcases culture through rice painting

Tom Kim Eng — better known by her nickname Aisha — is a Cambodian-Muslim mother of three based in Phnom Penh, who has found an unlikely medium for her art: rice.

Working from home, she and a small team of fellow artists create detailed paintings using individual grains, placing each one carefully onto a painting sketch before coating them in glue.

With a pair of tweezers and steady hands, Aisha picks up individual grains of dyed rice and presses them, one by one, onto a wooden board coated in glue — a painstaking process that can take anywhere from a few days to several months depending on the size and complexity of the piece.

Her path to artistry was anything but conventional. A former sticky rice cake seller in Siem Reap province, Aisha had no formal art training and there were no artists in her family. When she realised the cake trade offered little income and a short product shelf life, she turned her attention to rice itself — not as food, but as a canvas for cultural expression.

“I knew that the cake can't keep long from getting spoiled and I found that it was less income too. So I then started to focus on the importance of rice value, turned it into cultural art," Aisha told Reuters. "I wanted people around the world to see what is made from Cambodia (rice artwork) and Cambodian products.”

Today, she produces paintings depicting Angkor Wat, Apsara dancers, Cambodian cultural symbols and more, using more than 60 natural colours. Her works are treated with waterproof and anti-insect adhesive, preserving them for years.

Prices range from just a few dollars for smaller pieces to thousands for large, commissioned works. Aisha also accepts custom orders from individuals and institutions seeking a personal piece to display.

The precision demanded by the craft is unforgiving, said Ream Ratha, a fellow artist who works alongside Aisha.

"Using rice grains to form a painting of a human face and make it look exactly the same to the real face is so hard because the person (customer) can refuse to accept the finished painting if I make any mistake. So, this work is very difficult but it can be done through utmost patience and putting all my ability to it," Ratha said.

Aisha sells her creations at a weekend market along the walking street near Phnom Penh's Royal Palace riverfront, where both local and international visitors stop to admire them.

South Korean visitor Eric, who gave only his first name, said he had never encountered rice art before and purchased an elephant painting for his daughter. "In Korea and any other countries, it is really, really hard to find this kind of rice art," he said.

Aisha is committed to passing the craft on. She teaches students and colleagues, sharing both her skills and a portion of her earnings. Aisha hopes to eventually establish a formal rice arts training program, extending it across Cambodia's provinces and cities.

Aisha also sees the art form as a way to reach younger generations.

"I created the rice art project aimed at encouraging the younger generation - instead of spending too much time on their phones to turn to rice art, putting the rice grain into paintings. By doing that, they can have fun and they can slowly adapt to love art that would be good for their future."

Aisha's ambitions stretch further still. With conflict in the Middle East and the recent tensions between Cambodia and Thailand in mind, Aisha plans to create a large-scale rice painting carrying a single message — the importance of peace.

For Aisha, every grain placed is more than an artistic choice. It is a statement: that Cambodia's most ordinary crop can carry its most extraordinary stories.

Production: Chantha Lach, Juarawee Kittisilpa/Reuters