A bicephalous initiative

Like the figure of Janus, this dual art initiative dedicated to contemporary art looks in two complementary directions: the indoor urban environment for the Bangkok Kunsthalle and the natural outdoor environment for the Khao Yai Art Forest. Both venues function organically as evolving spaces and continue to expand primarily through artist residencies and commissions. The Kunsthalle is located in a former printing house in Bangkok’s boisterous Chinatown, also known as Yaowarat. Damaged by fire in 2001, the approximately 8,000-square-metre building has not been significantly altered by the new owner and may resemble an artists' squat at first glance. Situated in a gentrifying neighbourhood, the Kunsthalle building's preservation itself is notable, as a tendency in Bangkok is to tear down old buildings, sometimes despite public outcry.

The Art Forest is nestled near Khao Yai National Park, a protected site inscribed on the UNESCO Natural World Heritage List since 2005. Located in the rural region of Isan, the site is a three-hour drive from the capital. Spanning around 85 hectares of paddy fields and hilly, wooded landscapes, the site is still in its first stage of development, with a quarter of it already dedicated to acquired and commissioned artworks. The project recalls the links between the Jim Thompson Art Center in Bangkok and the Jim Thompson Farm, which opened as a complement to the urban centre in 2001, 50 km further east in the same region.

The two-headed nature of the Kunsthalle and the Art Forest is also embodied by the personalities at its helm: Marisa Chearavanont, the founder and owner, and Stefano Rabolli Pansera, the founding director. The South Korea-born Chearavanont is a philanthropist, art patron and collector. She is the wife of Soopakij Chearavanont, Chairperson of Charoen Pokphand Group, one of the largest conglomerates in Thailand and Southeast Asia. Pansera, an Italian architect-turned-curator, is the former director of Hauser & Wirth in St. Moritz, where he also founded a film festival. The initiative is driven by the ambition to empower the Thai art ecosystem, both nationally and internationally. In an interview with STIR, Pansera describes it as “first and foremost a geopolitical project”, that aims to “put Thailand under the spotlight”. Inspired by Palais de Tokyo in Paris, Pansera gestures to the notion of the Kunsthalle, “a museum without a collection”.

Rooted in Thainess

Pansera emphasises the centrality to the project of Thainess, or khwam pen thai (ความเป็นไทย), a commonly used term in Thailand to describe the tangible and intangible cultural characteristics of Thai people. At the Art Forest, Two Planets (2007-08), a video installation by Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook (b. 1957), shows how Northern Thai villagers react to reproductions of renowned Western masterpieces such as Luncheon on the Grass (Déjeuner sur l'herbe, 1863) by Édouard Manet and The Gleaners (Des glaneuses, 1857) by Jean-François Millet. As viewers watch the villagers observe the paintings and listen to their interpretations and critiques, they become part of an original mise en abyme, especially with the video screen outdoors, mirroring the villagers' setting. It also opens a compelling dialogue with Thai vernacular culture, while questioning the universal value associated with the European conception of fine arts.

Among other instances, we can also sense Thainess through the Buddhist philosophical emphasis on impermanence at the Kunsthalle. In this regard, Korakrit Arunanondchai’s (b. 1986) exhibition nostalgia for unity became a landmark in 2024 (May 31–October 31, 2024) as the most visited show to date. This site-specific intervention transformed an entire floor of the Kunsthalle into a temple-like space. Although the space appears physically empty, the multisensory setting filled it with a whimsical aura, embodying a deep interest in liminality—a state of in-betweenness, hovering between spirituality and dystopia. The multisensory approach of the immersive installation was fourfold: visually, with nebulous lighting and smoke enhancing the brutalist structure of the building; sonically, with a custom soundtrack featuring the artist's incantatory voice; and haptically, with the floor covered in a crunchy black resin, surprisingly reminiscent of the cracked surface of cookies and stimulating the sense of taste. The floor stood out as it also featured text written all around the space. Ultimately, the installation created a disruptive experience by first being experienced through the feet, an interesting twist in the Thai context, as feet are considered the lowest and least pure part of the body.

Healing as an artistic motto

Chearavanont and Pansera note that the concept of "healing through art" is central to the mission of both venues. In this context, Calligraphic Abstraction (February 1–July 13, 2025), the most recent exhibition at the Kunsthalle, dedicated to the major 20th century Thai-Chinese figure Tang Chang (1934–1990, also known as Chang Sae-tang)is particularly illuminating. On the ground floor, a selection of poems and calligraphic works from the early 1970s epitomise the artist’s meditative practice, which was deeply influenced by Taoism and the 17th century Chinese monk-painter Shitao. On the upper floor, visitors can witness the restoration of a monumental abstract monochrome diptych from the mid-1960s, with a trained specialist publicly ‘healing’ the canvas over a scheduled six-month period. All the works are on loan from the artist’s estate, with his heirs preparing to open a dedicated museum later this year near his historic home and studio in Bangkok's western suburbs.

Inspired by kintsugi, the traditional Japanese technique of repairing ceramics with lacquer and powdered gold or silver, the preceding exhibition (August 30–December 1, 2024) dedicated to Yoko Ono (b. 1933) followed a similar rationale. In the participatory artwork Mend Piece (1966/2018), visitors were invited to repair broken ceramic pieces. This pioneering work by Yoko Ono can now be seen as a seminal moment in the rising popularity of art therapy today, while also invoking the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi, an appreciation of the imperfect—an ethos fully embraced by both the Kunsthalle and the Art Forest.

In the Art Forest, the healing process becomes part of a broader effort to reconcile nature and culture. Fog Land #48435 (2024), a land art installation commissioned from Fujiko Nakaya (b. 1933), is exemplary in this regard. As a continuation of her pioneering series of “fog sculptures” initiated in the 1970s and exhibited worldwide, Nakaya’s “fog performance” makes natural forces visible, while revealing the beauty of nature. Mirroring her involvement in Experiments in Art and Technology (E.A.T.), the international collective founded in 1967 to foster collaborations between artists and engineers, this installation was developed with the support of Aquaria, an engineering system that harvests clean water from the air without depleting the site’s water resources.

With this work, Nakaya acknowledges Thailand’s animist culture and her own Japanese cultural heritage and spiritual engagement with nature. At a more theoretical level, Nakaya’s work also challenges the resilience of hylomorphism, the Aristotelian concept that contends every physical object, including artworks, is a compound of matter and form. This Eurocentric notion emphasises the imposition of form on matter. Nakaya’s contribution is fundamental in this respect, drawing upon East and Southeast Asian perspectives that traditionally view nature and culture as intertwined rather than dualistic.

Overall, it is still too early to fully assess the impact of the Kunsthalle and the Art Forest, as both venues are still expanding and have yet to reach their full potential. Notably, an entire floor will be dedicated to young Thai artists, a fitting initiative given that the new building for the state-owned National Art Gallery was completed approximately four years ago in eastern Bangkok but has since lacked a sustainable artistic program.

The biggest challenge for Chearavanont and Pansera will likely be striking a balance among a diverse range of exhibitions that leave a lasting impact on Thailand and Southeast Asia. The remote location of the Khao Yai site is another factor, as the target audience may differ from that of Bangkok. Unlike the Kunsthalle, full admission is not free, with ticket prices ranging from approximately 15 USD (500 THB) for full site access to a combined ticket with dinner costing up to 65 USD (2,200 THB) per person. The relationship with the CP Group will also be a key consideration for the future, as the Khao Yai Art initiative is not officially part of the CSR strategy of the Chearavanont family-owned conglomerate and has so far been entirely financed by Marisa Chearavanont.

As for Thailand’s international visibility, the country is undoubtedly in the spotlight, bolstered by its complementary institutions. The capital city is certainly having its moment, with the fourth Bangkok Art Biennale concluding at the end of February and the recent openings of the Kunawong House Museum and Museum Pier, two private collections dedicated to Thai visual art. Additionally, a major opening in Bangkok is scheduled for the end of the year: Dib, the museum of the late art collector Petch Osathanugrah (1960-1923), home to one of Southeast Asia’s largest collections of modern and contemporary art, and led by Miwako Tezuka. This opening will align with the fourth edition of the itinerant Thailand Biennale, returning to Phuket in December 2025.