BAB 2022 CHAOS:CALM: Meet three captivating artworks located in One Bangkok and The PARQ- art4d

MEET THREE CAPTIVATING ARTWORKS AT THE PRELUDE ONE BANGKOK AND THE PARQ FROM BANGKOK ART BIENNALE 2022, THE FESTIVAL THAT STRIVES TO MAKE BANGKOK AN INTERNATIONAL DESTINATION FOR CONTEMPORARY ART AND CULTURE

TEXT: PRATARN TEERATADA
PHOTO: KETSIREE WONGWAN EXCEPT AS NOTED

(For Thai, press here)

A contemporary art festival has evolved into one of the cultural activities that has the ability to generate revenue for a city while also serving as a platform for artists, curators, collectors, and directors of leading art and cultural organizations to present and share their artistic ideas and visions, potentially creating waves that can impact a society, economy, and city on a larger scale. Being able to physically experience a work of art, whether it is a painting, an installation piece, a sculpture, or even a live art performance, is a visceral and aesthetic journey that, at times, cannot be put into words.

‘Daily Stone’ by Francesco Arena at The PARQ

Venice Art Biennale (Italy), Art Basel (Switzerland), Documenta (Germany), Frieze Art Fair (London/New York), Echigo-Tsunari Art Triennial (Japan), Biennale of Sydney (Australia), or even the Singapore Biennale (Singapore) are not only recognized as some of the world’s most prominent art festivals but also for their statuses, which includes the strategically developed ability to deliver economic, social, and political contributions. It’s one of the devices used to manifest a nation’s ability and vision as the leader of a region or even the world. Through these festivals, countries are able to share their outlooks, raise awareness among the rest of the world about pressing issues, and forecast future possibilities and trends.

Thailand is no different. The organizing committee of the Bangkok Art Biennale (BAB) hopes that the festival will be a driving force in propelling the country’s creative economy and encouraging positive cultural changes by providing the general public with access to diverse forms of art. Exposure to art and culture will have enormous benefits for Thailand’s education system, increasing people’s cultural intelligence and awareness of various domestic and international issues. Bangkok Art Biennale 2022 is the third edition. CHAOS: CALM features over 200 contemporary artworks by 73 artists from 35 countries worldwide, spreading across 12 venues in Bangkok, including BACC (Bangkok Art and Culture Centre), QSNCC (Queen Siritkit National Convention Center), and JWD Art Space, to name a few.

Uninspired by Current Events at BAB cafe, The PARQ

The Prelude One Bangkok in collaboration with The PARQ are showcasing a series of public art projects and artistic programs to highlight the importance of art and culture on this special occasion. Their contribution also allows the general public to use the project’s spaces to build a creative community for art lovers, with the ultimate goal of making Bangkok an international destination for contemporary art and culture.

The Prelude One Bangkok I Photo: Pratarn Teeratada

The Prelude One Bangkok hosts a multimedia artwork titled ‘SilentDREAM’ by Chitti Kasemkitvatana.

‘SilentDREAM’ by Chitti Kasemkitvatana at The Prelude One Bangkok

Chitti Kasemkitvatana, also known as Joe, is an independent artist and curator who is fascinated by the relationship between the execution of art installations and the exchange of ideas across borders and networks. The temporary state, emptiness, contemporaneous memories, existence of loss, and absence are central to Chitti’s body of work. Specifically, the holes on edges and borders that allow substances to permeate and move through are among the artist’s interests.

SilentDREAM is a poetic work of art that examines the period between before Siam’s modernization (circa the 1830s) and Thailand’s current sociopolitical climate.The artist uses data transformation to communicate tales, spaces, and time from historical pictures, such as the mural by Krua In Khong at Baromniwas Rachaworaworawoharn. The painting was transformed into multiple-frequency sound waves. Through Chitti’s art, viewers learn how these images, sounds, and memories must coexist and cannot be separated.

The series is the final installment of a trilogy exhibition that examines the modernization of Siam and Thailand through comparisons with other contemporary scientific and multidisciplinary findings, particularly Karen Barad’s New Materialism theory and the poetic measurement of space/time. Having The Prelude One Bangkok as the venue implies the work’s connection to the evolution of modernity, as the mixed-use project is an illustrious depiction of the city’s current and future urban developments.

The PARQ, the front activity ground facing Ratchadapisek Road, houses a sculpture titled, ‘Daily Stone’ by Francesco Arena.

‘Daily Stone’ by Francesco Arena at The PARQ

The body of work of the Italian independent artist Francesco Arena includes performance art, installation art, and sculpture. Arena, who has a strong interest in personal and societal history, has shown his work all over the world, and ‘Daily Stone’ is the sculpture he produced particularly for BAB 2022. The imposing and innately natural stone is carved into a platform for hanging daily newspapers, which are changed every day. While the stone stand continues to serve as a messenger, oblivious to the changes occurring around it, continuing to serve its purpose. The work’s sculptural form, weight, proportion, and texture simultaneously communicate the meanings of stability and change.

At the BAB cafe on the third floor of The PARQ are works by Uninspired by Current Events, a Thai computer graphic artist who has become an Internet sensation for his thought-provoking digital art pieces that reflect Thailand’s everyday occurrences and news with wit and satire. For BAB 2022, the artist fills the physical area of the cafe and the online platform with interactive games and video art that exemplify his artistic style. Viewers, especially the followers of the artist’s social media platforms, will probably “get” and enjoy the meaning behind each piece quite well.