#curatorials

From art4d.com Text by Napat Charitbutra  THROUGH THE COLLABORATION OF KLAOMARD YIPINTSOI, THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF MRIGADAYAVAN PALACE AND CURATOR, CHITTI KASEMKITVATANA, ‘HISTORY’ AND ‘CONTEMPORARINESS’ ARE GIVEN EQUAL IMPORTANCE AND COEXIST BEAUTIFULLY WITHIN THE SPACE OF THE ARCHIVES ROOM. Using a portion of a space inside of a government-run museum to host temporary exhibitions is, undeniably, an interesting idea. It’s a model that has been widely employed by museums with a big enough capacity to do so. And within this one section of space, the old (historical data) is presented alongside the new (temporary exhibitions), causing the content of the museum to be more dynamic and interesting. Nevertheless, in the case of the ‘Archives Room’ of Mrigadayavan Palace, with its rather limited space whose size is almost incomparable to those of the Rattankosin Exhibition Hall or Museum Siam, the approach to spatial management where the old and the new are entirely separated is understandably impossible. But under the collaboration of Klaomas Yipintsoi, the director of the Office of Mrigadayavan Palace and curator, Chitti Kasemkitvatana (the team behind About Studio/About Café’s booming success throughout the 90s), ‘history’ and ‘contemporariness’ are given equal importance and coexist beautifully within the space of the Archives Room. The ‘Archives Room’ is a one-story building that was once used as the palace’s toolroom. It is located behind a cluster of throne halls situated on the outer ring of the palace. Ariya Songpraphai, the architect who oversaw the renovation of the throne halls and Archives Room provided interesting information about the architecture of the building. Constructed entirely out of concrete, the structure and foundation have stood strong for 93 years as the architecture ideally reflects the construction technology that can be dated back to 100 years ago. The renovation takes place cautiously due to the building’s aged structure while the readjustment of the floor and refurbishment of the system work are done with minimum effect on the structure (explaining why no air conditioner is installed inside of the space). The interior space is divided to serve two main functionalities: the Archives Room and the exhibition space. The Archives Room stores evidence found during the maintenance of the Palace’s throne halls and put on display are seven key architectural elements that reflect the historical context of the time when the construction took place. Among the exhibited objects are wooden panels taken from the roof frame with traces that show the use of a steam engine as a cutting tool or the scraps of newspaper stuffed in cavities that helped to determine the time of maintenance (1987-1994). Also exhibited are video renderings of the throne halls’ structures, historical documents and information about the project of the revival of the beachside forest around the Palace studied by Associate Professor Kittichet Sridit of Songklanakarin University. The next section is the exhibition spaces that are interwoven as parts of the Archives Room’s program. ‘Mrig’ by Thannatchai Bandasak and ‘Recollection of Beach Forest’ by LIKAY BINDERY, held between 1st October 2016 and 5th January 2015 are the exhibitions that debuted the space. Both works tell stories of the Palace from different aspects and while defining themselves as works of contemporary art, the contents of the two exhibitions still revolve around Mrigadaygavan, which was the subject provided by the Archives Room. ‘Recollection of Beach Forest’ is a series of installation art pieces conceived from the artists’ exploration of the local beach forest between February and July of 2016. Mali Jullakiet and Pantipa Tonchukiet explored the area around Mrigadayavan Palace and beach forest in Bo Nok sub-district of Prachuabkirikhan province before presenting their findings in three series of works of art: ‘Paper Botanical,’ the paper sculptures mimicking the shapes and forms of local trees (exhibited at the special exhibition room, Bann Chao Praya Ramrakob), ‘Visual Diary,’ the documentation of dried plants presented as an herbarium and ‘Plant Sculpture,’ a collection of resin and plaster sculptures created from molds made of different types of leaves. LIKAY BINDERY’s approach to documentation allows for viewers to see the structures and details of a great variety of leaves found within the area. ‘Mrig,’ Thannatchai Bandasak’s video art exhibition, bears a completely different characteristic. The artist began the artistic process from a desire to photograph the portraits of the throne halls and his interest in the details of their architecture where a modular system was brought in for the design and construction of the floor plan. Such execution created the lead-in line that opens/closes the viewers’ perspective while controlling the public/private nature of each zone of the palace (the outer court, middle court and inner court). From this point, the artist was given the chance to document the inner court area. The pictures were taken from the point of view of the inhabitants who once lived in the palace, looking out, following the lead-in line that runs from the interior space through the openings of doors and windows. The images were later arranged into a work of video art. Whether it’s the palace’s restriction that prohibits the inner court from being photographed (preventing the possibility of unauthorized photographs of the Royal family’s personal belongings) or the artist’s intention to capture the images with the inside-out perspective instead of documenting the space most people have never had access to, the camera did its job of recapturing memories of the former residents, offering viewers a portion of the experience of what it would be like to live in the Mrigadayavan Palace. Looking at the video, a strange feeling hits us as we begin to realize that the moving images before our eyes could be what the members of the Royal Court once saw. Apart from the two exhibitions, the space also features a number of works such as the wood sculptures by Thakol Khaosa-ad, who is also responsible for the design of the furniture used in the exhibition room. Managing the content within the limited space reflects the role of the curator, who chooses not to ‘separate’ the contemporary art from the overall theme of the exhibition but treats it as an ‘extension’ that explores the same subject matter, but with a different aspect and approach. Installation wise, the artworks are equally included as parts of the space of the Archives Room. No particular piece of art is given special attention as every displayed object in the room is exhibited under the same lighting (and as a result, causing some of the works such as ‘Visual Diary’ to go a bit unnoticed). It remains to be seen what the next exhibition will be and how the curator will find a way to work the content outside the subject of Mrigadayavan Palace into the context of the Archives Room.

An interview piece by Brian Curtin, first published in the Bangkok Post's Life section, 2 May 2012

You were the founding curator of the legendary About Studio/About Cafe art space in the late '90s?

I was the first person to take the role of curator. The space was founded by Klaomard Yipintsoi and Nopadon Kaosam-ang in 1997. And there was also About Art Related Activity (AARA), a non-profit organisation and outreach programme. How were these initiatives different for the general art scene in Thailand at that time?

At that time it was new for young artists to receive support in realising exhibitions and finding sponsorship etc. We did projects like Emerge, which showcased the works of students and recent graduates. The cafe space downstairs also featured performances, talks, and meetings. For example, I invited artists, architects and designers to discuss the question "What is creativity?", and the results were chaotic.

Later we established a library that was also an exhibition space. Varsha Nair was the first to create a site-specific installation there. I also initiated Artmart on the roof as a monthly event where artists could sell the products they typically make to earn money, like t-shirts. Sometimes fashion shows and music events were integrated. Eight Artmart events were held in total and over 500 people attended the last one. The police closed it down. Alfred Pawlin, the founder of Visual Dhamma gallery, did significant work on the art scene during an earlier period. To what extent were you aware of this, and how did you perceive its significance?

Khun Alfred is one of the most respected persons in the Bangkok art community, especially because of his activities at Visual Dhamma gallery and invaluable support of local artists. I knew about this through artist friends and Khun Alfred visited us at About Cafe.

Further to myself and Khun Alfred's work, there was also Feeling magazine and art related activities at Thammasart University in the m'80's. And Silom Art Space _ founded by Pinaree Sanpitak and Chatchai Puipia _ and Project 304, found by Gridthiya Gaweewong and colleague in the '90's; and many more that need to be acknowledged. You lived outside Thailand for a period. What experiences did you bring back?

I was an art student in Australia in the early '90s. In 1997 I received a grant from AFAA (now the French Institute) for a 3-month residency in Paris where I worked as an assistant to the curator Hans Ulrich Obrist at the Musee d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris. This was the time that Obrist was working on the Cities on the Move international exhibition and I was one of the artists included. Before Paris, I never considered the museum as a place that makes things happen. My thinking came from being an artist and playing with ideas and techniques etc. Whilst I was an assistant to Obrist I saw connections between curatorial, administrative and conceptual aspects: the small room of an office connects to the exhibition space and then to the world at large. I began to wonder about how to bring all this together, to merge them. Then I noticed shops like Colette in Paris where fashion, art and design all share the same space. One time I saw bicycles in a window display. This isn't necessarily about making art but we can see how all can be related in terms of experience and material. This insight informed my ideas for AARA. Why did you become a monk?

Around 2000 I felt overwhelmed. My activities in the arts were addressing intellectual and spiritual questions and then I met Luang Phu Hlean, who offered a turning point. Meeting him is quite an experience, like looking into the void without fear. There is a line from The Matrix that is useful here, ''If there is a beginning, there must be the end''. I began to think about another way of life, one I hadn't experienced. This prompted my monastic journey. How is Buddhism important to your practice as an artist?

My experience in forest monasteries restructured my thinking and ways of living and working. Daily life as a monk is like putting theory into practice, dealing with both yourself and sharing responsibilities as a community. You have to let go of certain things, and become somewhat porous. One of my mentors used teach through gestures and actions, not words. This is comparable to the art of John Cage or Yves Klein. Tell me about your upcoming art project in Paris.

I'll be at the Paris at Cite Internationale des Arts and my project is for an exhibition at FRAC Ile-de-France - Le Plateau, entitled Mount Fuji Does Not Exist, curated by Elodie Royer and Yoann Gourmel. I am interested in ideas of art as a spiritual construction, and my proposal was to do research on Yves Klein's oeuvre, especially his Theatre of Void and Immaterial Pictorial Sensibility works. One of my approaches will be to find the deepest point that a human can go underneath Paris. I'm really interested in the idea of being on solid ground, while there is a void underneath. What is your opinion on the current art scene in Thailand?