What is “Decadence”, and how does the orchid come to be part of it?

The lecture “Coloured Sorrows and Perfumed Sins: Orchids, Sex, Art, and Labour in Decadent English Literature” invites audiences to approach Decadent English literature through the figure of the orchid. Considered simultaneously as plant, commodity, and symbol, the orchid becomes a point of entry into questions of art, gender, labour, and imperial power in late nineteenth-century Europe, a period in which European society was undergoing profound moral, political, and structural upheaval.

The late nineteenth century marked a moment when established moral frameworks, dominant ways of thinking, and long-standing structures of authority were increasingly challenged. Decadence emerged as an artistic and literary movement that questioned the boundaries between truth and illusion, and actively sought out unfamiliar, excessive, or transgressive forms of beauty in order to reveal the decay of inherited conventions.

Amid the expansion and crisis of European empires, well-known writers were imprisoned because of their sexual relationships with men. At the same time, women took to the streets to demand the right to vote, while workers organised, formed political parties, protested against capital, and confronted state forces.

During this same period, orchids flourished both in the material world and within literary texts. They circulated as commodities and decorative objects in the homes of the wealthy, while also appearing as plants originating from distant lands beyond Europe. In this way, orchids unsettled the boundary between nature and culture, travelling from colonised territories to emit their scent beneath European noses.

This lecture examines literary works by Decadent writers such as Oscar Wilde, Theodore Wratislaw, and H. G. Wells, alongside cookbooks and culinary texts that bear traces of orchids through ingredients such as vanilla. Through these materials, the lecture traces how orchid vines bloomed, spread, withered, and remained embedded within a historical moment that some experienced with fear, while others met with delight.

Lecture by Ming Panha, Lecturer in English Language and Literature, Faculty of Liberal Arts, Thammasat University. His academic interests focus on nineteenth-century English literature, particularly the late Victorian period.

Following the lecture, a Q&A session will take place, joined by the curator and the artist, offering an opportunity for further discussion and exchange with the audience.

Saturday, 31 January 2026

1.00–3.00 PM

Location: Floor 1, SAC Gallery

This lecture is a public programme of the exhibition “To fall from grace” by artist Naraphat Sakarthornsap.

Please note that the lecture will be conducted in Thai.

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