Bangkok Art Trip #3: Red & Yellow

Yesterday immediate trip, narrated by Ton - Pratompong Namjaidee.
We put down art equipments at 3 pm,
ready to get on a cross-river boat.
Then we got in a taxi to Bangkok University Gallery,
our first destination.

It was very crowded in the cab due to our five fully-developed figures. On our way to the gallery, the cab's radio was turn on loudly. The radio-listener who called was increasing more heat to the program by saying something about "Our Democracy". We looked outside the cab, saw a red pick-up car with our former prime minister's smile. It is actually a fan. "Red...Yellow...Red...Yellow" -- that's what we hear from that call.

Finally, we arrive. We walked through one of the university's gate, passed some buildings, saw some students, and walked along to the other side. This art gallery looks like it should.........

Brandnew 2009 is exhibited from March to April with two artists Olan Netrangsi and Kritsada Dussadeewanich and Gridthiya Gaweewong as a curator. The first room is on the second floor. "Dice" by Olan Netrangsi is an installation art that let the spectator to participate with it. A table game that we have to see the projected shaking dice-in-a-bottle video on the wall, which connected to a timer for a dice-roller that assigned us how many grids we can walk in one turn. If a player stops at the special grid, and participant has to do what the grid says. It's like a snakes and ladders game that we used to play since we were kids.

On the Fourth floor of the building. Kritsada Dussadeewanich, who is the owner of 24 hrs. Art Project that allow his artist friends to join. He presented the thinking process for artworking that is basically based on "space" more than the word "24 hrs.", which was presented in the title. It is "the new space", but it still lies in the meaning of "art space". This thinking process show us that the artist want to let formal "art spaces" such as art centers or galleries to rethink and see the importance of artists' thoughts, which are the main force that drive arts forward...

Visiting galleries is very exhausting. We all agree that we should eat something by the main cafeteria of the university. Smoothies and oily rice with fried mince pork were laid on the table. We spent half and hour eating and discussing what we've seen. Then we an underground train for 15 minutes from Klong Toei to Sam Yan to our next destination, BACC. We arrived there in the beginning of the night, which is a normal time for opening an exhibition. We walked to the second floor, looked down and saw art activities that was going on. It was very crowded and chaos with reporters holding cameras and video cameras.

Walking from the third floor to the venue of "Gondola al Paradiso Co., Ltd.", we saw the exhibition's text on a display window that tells us briefly about these art projects are going to move to show in the 53rd International Art Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia in Italy. We spread out and took some pictures, some of us met their friends unexpectedly. Someone in the event looks very familliar, but we're not sure who they are. Perhaps they might be people who work in many art scenes we went to. "Art scene is very narrow." That's the first thing that comes to my mind. "It might be true." and that's the answer...

The art center served us the foamy, smooth drinks. We talked for a while and moved to the first floor to look at the room that will use for "Not Even Pineapples" exhibition on April 4th.

It's getting dark, and many official places had closed, so we decided to go to some place "unofficial". That unofficial place located near Hua Chang Bridge. We walked from the last official place of the day, along the footpath, across the bridge, to that unofficial place to do our official routine work.

Oh, we still heard the whisper "Red..Yellow..Red..Yellow" in our ears.