Contemporary independent curatorial practices as contested ground: tracing exhibition histories in Thailand from court, to state, to curating for the people

Abstract

This essay traces and reappraises the curatorial practices in Thailand from the late nineteenth century to the present. It seeks to situate the curatorial practice under the notion of nationalism and cryptocolonisation in relation to its social history. It explores three main parts: first the birth of curatorial practices in relation to the museum and exhibition in Siam since the late nineteenth century showing how, during the colonial period, Siam used these as cultural diplomacy tools, to present herself as independent from the colonial West and to engage with the world. Second, it asks what role the state played in using exhibitions and fairs to promote and introduce the modern concept of ‘constitution’ after the radical shift from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy in 1932, and the making of public art in the early twentieth century. Third, it looks at how the art institutions and curatorial practices emerged yet became absent in the context of local and regional modern and contemporary art scene. How did contemporary art curatorial practices reconnect and engage with the global art scene during the period of globalisation, which seemed to be progressive and transnational? It also explains how Thailand’s ongoing political turbulence and the lack of freedom of expression has unfortunately hindered the local contemporary art scene, despite the increasing amount of public and private support.

Keywords:

• Thai contemporary art
• curatorial practices
• museum and exhibition history

Notes on contributor

Gridthiya Gaweewong (b. Chiangrai, 1964) is currently artistic director of the Jim Thompson Art Center, Bangkok. She co-founded an independent art organization, Project 304 in 1996 after receiving her MAAA (Master of Arts in Administrations and Policy, School of the Art Institute of Chicago). She earned her Doctor of Fine Arts (2016) from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok. Her curatorial interests include issues of social transformation confronting contemporary artists from Southeast Asia and beyond since the Cold War. Her numerous exhibitions include Under Construction (Tokyo, 2000–2002), Politics of Fun at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin (2005, with Ong Ken Seng), the Bangkok Experimental Film Festival (1997–2007, with Apichatpong Weerasethakul), the Saigon Open City in Ho Chi Minh City (2006–2007, with Rirkrit Tiravanija) and Unreal Asia, Oberhausen International Short Film Festival (2009) (with David Teh) and Between Utopia and Dystopia, MUAC, Mexico City (2011). She has curated Missing Links, Jim Thompson Art Center (2015) and The Serenity of Madness, a travelling exhibition. She served in the curatorial team of the 12th Gwangju Biennale, South Korea, and curated the exhibition Facing Phantom Borders (2018).