Fah Thai Magazine Mar-Apr 2020

ART MOVEMENT
MAKING WAVES ACROSS
THE REGION
The Singapore Biennale is not the
only place where Thai art is making
a splash. In Indonesia, Chiang Maibased
artist Mit Jai Inn was recently
commissioned by Museum MACAN
in Jakarta to design their Children’s
Space. For this task, Mit produced
“Colour in Cave”, a vibrant, expressive
space that comes alive with interaction.
Colour in Cave is on display at
MACAN (Modern and Contemporary
Art in Nusantara) museum in
Jakarta until March and the artist
hopes the space will help inspire
young creative minds to explore
and flourish in a stimulating
environment. “It’s a real honour
for me to see this project through
as it is about children,” explains
Mit Jai Inn.
A seminal figure in the Thai
contemporary art scene, Mit cofounded
the Chiang Mai Social
Installation Project in the early
’90s and the Cartel Art Space in
Bangkok in 2013. He explains that
the Chiang Mai project was created
to show how the practice of art can
be inseparable from our daily lives
and vice versa.
Similarly, the Cartel Art Space
serves as an avenue for local artists
to express themselves without fear
of censorship. “They [the artists]
have no pressure within this space,
so they do not have to worry about
what is right or wrong, what is art,
or if they can sell or not,” he says.
“Because ultimately, we need young
artists like we need clean water.”
Vipash agrees, saying Thai artists
are playing a major role in shaping
contemporary art in the region.
Top Right
The Singapore
Biennale 2019
presents 150
works across a
wide variety of
mediums, including
performance.
Middle
Museum MACAN’s
Children’s Art Space
aims to inspire
young creative
minds.
Bottom Left
Mit Jai Inn
Bottom Right
‘Colour In Cave’
by Mit Jai Inn is
showing at the
Museum MACAN
until March 2020.
Thai artists are
playing a major
role in shaping
contemporary art
in the region.
However, he wonders whether the
category of Thai contemporary art
should even exist in the first place.
“What kind of artistic practice
is perceived by the art world as Thai
art?” he asks.
“I think at this point in time,
it is more important to highlight
how Thai artists engage with shared
contemporary issues,” he adds.
“Those [issues] go beyond national
boundaries. I think in order to be
accepted by the international art
community, we need to speak the
same language of contemporary
art – one that is universal and
appreciated by all.”
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