Stylistic hybridity in palatial architecture during the reign of King Rama V: a postcolonial reinterpretation on modern Siam

ABSTRACT

Informed by postcolonial theories, this research presented critical investigations on Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall, the ordination hall at Niwet Thammaprawat Temple, and Munthatu Rattanaroj Villa. Aside from examining the three hybrid Siamese-European buildings beyond stylistic analyses and antiquarian mode of historiography, the upcoming discussions unveiled that the case studies – which were commissioned at the height of Western colonial expansions in Southeast Asia – testified for the Siamese’s: (1) reinterpretations, reappropriations, and recreations of European cultural artifacts; (2) active and authoritative roles in generating, combining, and projecting their versions of contested meanings upon the immediate world and beyond; (3) assertions of a newly acquired self-image by conspicuous consumptions of Western material culture; and (4) long established tradition of mediating power through built forms. In addition, by utilizing the politics of representations as a mode of problematization, these eclectic palatial structures were perceived as representational tools to create a civilized identity and discursive devices for power mediation, as opposed to unskilled or kitschy copies of Western precedents. In conclusion, the inquiries essentially argued that although Siam was among few places in Asia that did not succumb to a direct colonial rule by any Western power, the kingdom was a de facto crypto-colony.

KEYWORDS:

• Hybrid buildings
• palatial structures
• politics of representations in architecture
• postcolonial studies
• crypto-colonization in Siam

Acknowledgements

The author would like to express a sincere gratitude to Patcharapong Kulkanchanachewin and Pinai Sirikiatikul from Faculty of Architecture, Silpakorn University, Thailand, for their permissions to reproduce the three-dimensional visualization of Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall. Special thanks also went to the following KMITL students who helped generating architectural drawings of the case studies: Chetsada Thongkham, Kanokwan Khwamkhunkhoei, Natnicha Thongdee, Piraya Zaeung, Porameat Soponphutthaporn, Sarisa Philaiwan, Watsana Detwongsa, Yaraporn Pianjit, and Yuparase Kamnaseang. Finally, many constructive criticisms and perceptive comments on the manuscript were kindly provided by three anonymous reviewers from Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering. While the insights were theirs, any error remained my own.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

¹ In this research, the term “Siam” referred to the absolutist kingdom whose monarchical rule ended in 1932, whereas “Thailand” indicated the democratic nation after the 1932 revolution, despite the fact that the constitutional government continued to use “Siam” as the name of the country until 1939.

² Likewise, the same vein of criticism serving as a counterargument could be made that the notions of syncretism and hybridity embedded in Nestor Garcia Canclini’s mestizaje discourse, too, could not capture the full complexity of crypto-coloniality in modern Siam that shaped the designs of eclectic cultural artifacts. Although both the mid-19^th century Siam and early-20^th century Latin American countries were semi-autonomous from the imperial West, the Iberoamericana regimes once constituted the trans-Atlantic provinces of either the Spanish or Portuguese (or French) Empire. In contrast, Siam had never been subjected to a direct rule by any Western power, and therefore never been completely integrated into the social, economic, political, and cultural spheres of Occidental world before. So, it could be contended that crypto-colonial experiences in Siam markedly differed from those in the Latin American region, where Western culture – which was assimilated by the mestizaje societies – was institutionalized by the conquistadores themselves as opposed to the modernizing indigenous elites.

³ The evidence could be seen from the Franco-Siamese war in 1893 coupled with Siam’s declaration of war on Germany and Austria-Hungary in 1917.

⁴ According to Bhabha (1990, 211) the third space “puts together the traces of certain other meanings or discourses.” The process of cultural hybridity “gives rise to something different, something new and unrecognisable, a new area of negotiation and representation.”

⁵ Foucault saw the subject in his theory in two interrelating ways. First, one could not communicate outside discourse effectively and therefore was subject of discourse, meaning that he/she was somehow determined by discourse, its meanings, power and regulations. Second, the viewer or reader becames subject to the discourse if he/she puts him-/herself at the position from which discourse made most sense. This processes of becoming subject of or to discourse was called subjectivization (Wikieducator 2008).

⁶ These construction details caused inherent instability to the superstructure of the building that resulted in significant damages to the roof and spires in 1891 and 1896 (for instance, see: NA, R5 MPW, k R5 YTh/19 YTh8.1/16, June 20, 1896).

⁷ The Arts and Crafts philosophy in esthetical value was influenced by John Ruskin’s appreciations of medieval craftsmanship that created ancient buildings in Europe (see: Perry and Livingstone 2005).

⁸ Moreover, the ubosotha at Wat Niwet Thammaprawat was the only royal building among the triple case studies that was open to public visits on a regular basis, owing to its virtue as a religious facility. Whereas the Chakri Maha Prasat had continued to serve the original purpose as a throne hall, the Vimanmek had recently resumed the duty of a regal residence for King Rama X after its major renovation was completed in 2020.

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Koompong Noobanjong

Koompong Noobanjong currently serves as a professor of architecture at KMITL. Holding a PhD in architectural history, theory, and criticism from the University of Colorado, he has authored several works exploring power and politics of representations in architecture and urban space in Thailand, including The Aesthetics of Power: Architecture, Modernity, and Identity from Siam to Thailand (2013, White Lotus Press). While focusing on critical studies of the built environment, his recent scholarly publications also feature a number of ethnographic research on cross-cultural learning in architectural and design education.