76 artists from across the world explore issues like ecology and cultural identity at Thailand’s premier art expo
Bangkok Art Biennale 2024 has embraced the theme “Nurture Gaia”. Inspired by Mother Earth, this year’s Biennale explores contemporary themes such as anthropology, collectivism, ecology, feminism, and the politics of time and place.
Organised by Thai Beverage and its partners, the Biennale features works by 76 artists from 39 countries across 11 iconic venues, including the National Museum Bangkok – Siwamokkha Phimal Hall, Wat Arun Ratchawararam, Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, Museum Siam and Queen Sirikit National Convention Center.
Understanding the inspiration and stories behind each piece enhances the experience of viewing art. Below are some works that Life had the opportunity to view and learn about from artistic director Prof Apinan Poshyananda and curators Pojai Akratanakul, Paramaporn Sirikulchayanont and Brian Curtin, as well as the artists themselves.
National Artist Kanya created this massive piece on a 15m-long canvas to express her concern about the environment. Kanya explained that when she saw news of war or missile testing, she felt a deep sorrow. She imagined the Goddess of Earth feeling heartbroken as war took away everything from the people, animals and the environment. She believes that some humans are ungrateful to Mother Earth and that this ingratitude not only causes suffering now, but will have negative consequences for future generations.
The painting is coated with seven to eight layers of paint, starting with black to symbolise the loss of the world’s beauty. After black are layers of green, red, pink, purple and gold to represent the beauty of flowers, trees and nature. Red symbolises the bleeding of the Earth Goddess and white was applied to heal and mend her. The artist hopes that people will help heal the world in any way they can.
Die Mutter (The Mothers) Isaac Chong Wai
Chong, a Berlin-Hong Kong artist, created a video installation inspired by a woodcut by German artist Käthe Kollwitz. The woodcut depicts an emotional scene of widows and their children who lost loved ones to war. This image deeply moved Chong and inspired him to create the video performance. In the video, people move in a circle and sing a mix of dirges and lullabies in various languages created by music director Dagmar Aigner.
Groundloop Lisa Reihana
Groundloop is a digital video which depicts a voyage of the Māori to nature and their ancestors, as Reihana herself is a Māori descendant. The video follows their journeys which navigate between New Zealand and Australia. It explores Māori ancestral stories, their connections to nature and the sea and their respect to spirits. Thailand also has indigenous communities in Phuket and the Andaman Sea islands, and there is a cultural diffusion among these people, particularly in areas of navigation and animism.
Kannamma by George K.
The National Museum Bangkok
The Sun Of The Front Palace Komkrit Tepthian
Komkrit, who is renowned for his handicraft gashapon, or capsule toys, exhibits four sculptures from his Time Machine series at The National Museum Bangkok. His creations, which look like antique pieces, are placed among ancient artefacts to reflect on questions of authenticity and how artefacts evolves over time.
Komkrit interpreted the theme “Nurture Gaia” as a reference to motherhood. Drawing on his interest in history, he envisioned history as a mother while her children represent the present. Inspired by his research, Komkrit created sculptures with the aim of making history more appealing to the public.
One of his works, The Sun Of The Front Palace, was inspired by the childhood name of the Phra Maha Uparaja, or the next in line to the throne of King Rama III. Phra Maha Uparaja had the nickname Chang, meaning elephant, and was known as Mom Arunothai, meaning the sun. Therefore, the sculpture resembles an elephant holding the sun in its hands.
Solitude Of Silences by Gimhongsok.
Our Place In Their World Chitti Kasemkitvatana and Nakrob Moonmanas
Our Place In Their World is a two-channel video installation, with another set showcased at the Venice Biennale 2024. This collaborative installation presents an alternative perspective on historical events. It focuses on two key narratives: King Chulalongkorn’s diplomatic journey to Europe, and the lesser-known travel experiences of ordinary people who had opportunities to travel abroad.
Nakrob gave an example of Thongkam from Phetchaburi province, who travelled to the UK and the US when he was a child. He began his journey working as an acrobat and eventually became a hotel executive. When he returned to Thailand during the reign of King Rama VI, he was called weird because he could not speak Thai fluently and did not know much about his motherland.
Kannamma George K.
George K., a self-taught Indian artist, changed his career from banking to art after surviving the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. His artwork raised awareness about transgenderism, which is still considered taboo and carries significant societal stigma in India. Kannamma features life-size sculptures inspired by the Tamil Nadu festival where transgender people symbolically marry the god Aravan and become widowed.
Transfigurations by Agi Haines.
Bangkok Art and Culture Centre
Transfigurations Agi Haines
Agi Haines, a British researcher focusing on design, science and technology, explores the idea of using surgery to modify human bodies, especially in children to solve future problems. These problems could be related to health, the environment or social issues.
Transfigurations exhibits several infant sculptures displayed in glass cases. From a distance, the display appears quite adorable. However, when visitors look closer, they will notice unusual bodily modifications in each infant such as a large stitch on one infant’s neck and a missing toe. The exhibit raises questions about degradation of nature that runs counter to technological advancements, as well as ethics of using technology to modify human bodies.
Die Mutter (The Mothers) by Isaac Chong Wai.
Solitude Of Silences Gimhongsok
Gimhongsok, a Korean artist, created a new work for his Solitude Of Silences series. Inspired by interviews with Thais about their lives and jobs, Gimhongsok created three human figures wearing animal masks — a cat-masked motorbike delivery driver, a dinosaur-masked cleaning lady and a mouse-masked bus driver.
While the cat and mouse figures express exhaustion from working long hours, the dinosaur figure lies sideways on a platform. These figures are accompanied by descriptions from interviews that express the workers’ feelings.
The artwork portrays the struggles of labourers which showcases their need for support from the government and society. The cat figure represents a delivery man who has to race against time for his income. The mouse figure is a bus driver wearing a police uniform because he dreams of having a stable and respectful job. The dinosaur-masked cleaning lady works at a hospital and dreams of sending her children to college, but it seems impossible due to her low income.
“Bangkok Art Biennale 2024” will run until Feb 25 across 11 venues. For more information, visit bkkartbiennale.com.
Our Place In Their World by Chitti Kasemkitvatana and Nakrob Moonmanas.