Unchalee Anantawat
Crazy People Are Crazy
What inspired your piece?
The diversity of the people here.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired?
I like to walk down streets and sois that I’ve never been to. I’ll look at buildings and figure out shortcuts to different sois. I look for inspiration in new places and I think .
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love Bangkok because the laws are flexible—but I also hate that, too. People here are relaxed and not so serious, so living here enables you to be carefree. But, really, the flexibility of the law is also what’s holding our country back.
How does living in Bangkok influence your art?
It doesn’t affect me that much, but it allows me to freely produce work in a fitting environment. If I want to be some place surrounded by people I just have to head into town, or if I want to be somewhere quiet and secluded I can head to the suburbs.
Anmom
Hiding Away
What inspired your piece?
My inspiration comes from Khaosan Road. I wanted to play with the idea that there’s more to it than meets the eye. With Khaosan, people usually think of the bars, dirty shows and foreigners. But there are many hidden gems to be found: culture, good food and, yes, great tattoo parlors.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired?
I don’t have a spot I go to, but if I feel stuck, I’ll stay home and sleep. My work relies on silence and lots of time with myself just thinking.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love that we have so many types of communities here, the people are diverse and there’s lots of culture. It’s a chaotic yet beautiful city, where taxis won’t take passengers and people are always rushing to go places. But there are also places that are quiet and serene, like the suburbs. I hate places that are crowded and where people are always in a rush like the BTS and Siam.
How does living in Bangkok influence your art?
It helps me get in contact with more customers and because I live in the suburbs and live somewhere quiet, in a way it helps me produce work more easily.
P7
Horizon BK P7
What inspired your piece?
I used lots of colors to represent the people here. I was born in Bangkok, so I wanted to use these colors to represent our lives in Bangkok from past to present. Different colors represent all the characters Bangkok has to offer, plus to me Bangkok is like a splash of color to Asia itself.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired?
It all starts in my head. I can work anywhere and I don’t have places I go to look for inspiration. Everything comes from the inside.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love the random things, like the fact that there are places for us to go skateboarding, ride bicycles or go see a Thai boxing match at the ring. I’m also a fan of dessert stores—yep, I love cakes. I don’t really hate anything in particular about Bangkok, but if I had to name something, it would be all the protest mobs that cause trouble to so many people.
How does living here affect your work?
There’s no effect, really, because for me making a work of art comes naturally. I can work anywhere and still produce the same thing. What allows me to produce my work is my inner thoughts and ideas, not the environment. Art can be made anywhere.
Anuwat Khaomanit
Untitled
What inspired your piece?
The picture depicts the people of Bangkok in different situations as we see them on the streets and any random thing they might do as part of their routine.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired?
I do like to think about my work in front of the computer or at my workplace, but if I’m really stuck, I go to parks or places with lots of green space where it’s quiet.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love the people here because it’s so diverse; we have so many types of people and from so many countries. I hate the traffic here; it’s so bad you can never get used to it.
How does living in Bangkok influence your art?
Living here makes it easier for me to produce my work because all the resources I need are here. I can’t imagine having to work from the suburbs; it would be too much for me.
Tripuck Supawattana
กรุงเทพเมืองหลากหลาย (Krung-Thep-Muang-Lhak-Lhai)
What inspired your piece?
Our urban lifestyle, which is chaotic, confusing and full of social inequalities. It sounds negative but it’s also a charm of Bangkok. We see all sorts of mindboggling things here: high-rise buildings next to shophouses, the rich in the same places as the poor. Bangkok is unique, one of the few places that has everything.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired?
I like to go to places with lots of people like Chinatown, Sanam Luang and Siam. You find everyone from the rich, the poor, the workers and the homeless. The juxtaposition of random subjects is amazing.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
It’s a love-hate relationship; I love this city for its diversity but also hate it. Just like most things, diversity has a positive effect on you but sometimes it’s just too much. Often times I feel like being in a place that is quiet where people live their lives in simplicity rather than racing at such a fast pace.
How does living in Bangkok influence your art?
Sometimes it’s in an indirect way, like the shitty transportation and traffic, which in turn affect your mood to work. But then again, we’re a capital city and everything you need to feel inspired is here. Where I am plays an important part in my work. If I were somewhere else without much going on, my work would reflect that.
Pomm Jitpratuk,
Because You Are Here
What inspired your piece?
I want to show the idea that we love Bangkok because our families and friends are here, and that without our loved ones it would be meaningless.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired?
I don’t have a place I go to get inspired, when it happens it just does, no matter where I am. You just have to keep an open mind, learn to observe and, who knows, things might ignite.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love HM the King, that’s the only thing I love about Thailand, because without him and his sacrifices, we’d all be doomed. What I hate most are the bad living conditions. We’ve got the resources, we just don’t use them efficiently. I don’t mind the traffic or the heat, but years have passed and lots of things haven’t improved one bit. It feels like we’re always being pushed around. Choices are limited and there isn’t much of a cultural center.
How much does living here affect your work?
It gives me so many different angles to choose from due to the diversity of people here. A city is bound to affect who you are, which in turn affects how I portray people through my work.
Oat Monthien
The Road
What inspired your piece?
The piece is titled “The Road” and is inspired by my fascination with the variety of creatures that walk Bangkok’s roads. I vividly remember that every morning when I was going to my high school in Ladprao, I would notice something new and interesting. From a lost farang or a crazy taxi driver to the tranquil monks, each had their own unique story yet blended together as cohesive, buzzing traffic, all sharing the same road. This sums up the amazingness of Bangkok for me.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired or motivated?
My local talad-nut (weekly market) or just staring at the traffic jam at night from a crossover bridge.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love the surreal vibe. It’s one of the very few cities in the world where you feel anything is possible. I also love the fascinating blend of cultures, all in one place! It’s overwhelming at times, but you could live here all your life yet still learn something new every day. What I really hate, though, is that there’s no respect for your peace of mind as you travel on the MRT or BTS. Loud repetitive commercials drive me mad—no, I don’t want to be white, thank you very much!
How does living here influence your art?
I grew up in Don Mueang, so the markets, temple fairs, trains and slums have provided me with endless stories and a lively color palette to illustrate them.
Rukkit Kuanhwate
HEARTBK
What inspired your piece?
I wanted to focus on animals. We’re a city that is not so green or ecological, so I wanted to play with that idea and focus on nature to give people something that they lack in real life.
What are your favorite spots to get inspired?
The TCDC and libraries in general. I love looking at old books, not necessarily just stuff about graphics and arts.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love Bangkok’s contradictions: lots of things here don’t really go together, like expensive, fancy places located down dark sois. What I hate are the conflicts between people, especially those who speak out violently or disrupt the lives of others. Some people are so narrow-minded; they don’t know how to listen.
How does living here influence your art?
It definitely plays a part in my growth as an artist, in the sense that I get more jobs here. But I have to admit that I’m more inspired working in other provinces that are more liberating in terms of surroundings and ambience. Bangkok is very confined and it does sometimes get difficult to produce something new.
Pairoj Teeraprapa
นารีผล ’๕๖ (Na-ree-pol ‘56)
What inspired your piece?
The idea of using Thai arts to make this country more beautiful. I feel that people are too excited about modernization, especially the newer generations. I want to display Thai arts, as seen in temples, in a more modern medium. Everything will be communicated through the use of Thai fonts newly designed just for this purpose. I feel that people can identify with this.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired?
Anywhere as long as it’s quiet. Anywhere from the woods, a waterfall or even on an airplane, whenever it feels right I’ll start sketching.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love the fact that Bangkok, being the capital city, gets the best of all Thai arts, which is very inspirational. I feel like there’s always more to learn and observe about Thai arts. I hate Bangkok for the big gap between the rich and the poor—it’s sad that there’s not much empathy for those in need.
How does living in Bangkok influence your art?
It’s harder for your career as an artist to start here since people don’t appreciate Thai arts. Most established Thai artists are famous due to displaying their work abroad or to foreigners. In Bangkok, Thai artists blend together, no one really gets credit for their work and they don’t stand out from the crowd. Here, people don’t pay for individuality and quality in each artwork—they pay for quantity.
Somyot Kumsang 
กรุงเทพ (Krung-Thep)
What inspired your piece?
I was inspired by traditional Thai art. I am Thai and quite conservative, to be honest. I value the beauty of traditional Thai arts such as sculptures seen at temples because it’s our roots. I feel like we might not be able to compete with others on certain things, but when it comes to art we’re up there.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired?
I like to go to temples and avoid malls in particular. Temples offer you shelter and cool your heart down, but malls take away your money and only cool down your body.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love museums and temples. I’m pretty traditional in my way of life, so these two places keep me focused. I hate the traffic; we lose precious time to it.
How does living in Bangkok influence your art?
For me, it doesn’t matter where I live, I feel like the place I live in is only partly reflected in my work. In the end, though, my work will always reflect my Thai roots.
Kathy MacLeod
MBK
What inspired your piece?
I’ve been planning a series of drawings of different places around Bangkok—bustling areas where lots of different narratives and social circles come together. I chose to start with MBK because there’s no place where more wacky characters congregate. And everyone is on their own mission. Also, if you look at all the things that are sold in MBK—all the souvenirs and T-shirts with rude sayings and fake luxury brands—it paints a very unique portrait of Bangkok as seen through a tourist’s eyes. The city to them is represented by a pirated Iron Man DVD and a shirt with an elephant on it.
What’s your favorite spot to get inspired?
I like going to the TCDC to work. I like how quiet it is (no blasting of popsanova music, here), and the big windows bring in the best natural light along with a great view of Bangkok. It feels like everyone around you is working diligently on something creative.
What do you love and hate most about Bangkok?
I love the people. Bangkok pulls a lot of interesting characters into its orbit and I’m lucky to call some of them my best friends. I’m lucky to have found an amazing creative community here, without whom Bangkok would be totally intolerable. As for the people I don’t “love” exactly, like sexpats, I still love that they exist, because it’s what makes this place hilarious and full of good stories. What I dislike most about Bangkok is the endless construction of new malls. I find myself in a mall at least three times a week and I hate myself for it.
Advertisement
