PHUKET.- Thailand’s Office of Contemporary Art and Culture announced the fourth edition of its roving Thailand Biennale, to be launched in the idyllic and intriguing resort island of Phuket. Eternal [Kalpa] invokes a Hindu-Buddhist conception of time—the lifetime of the universe. The exhibition will feature more than 60 artists from Asia and beyond, many living and working on islands and coasts, exploring the diversity and contradictions of temporal experience.
Blessed with a balmy climate and famed for its hospitality, Phuket has always harboured diversity: a haven for people and other species coming from every direction, a transit point between worlds. For centuries its bays welcomed pilgrims, traders, nomads and pirates, alongside migrants seeking new rhythms and opportunities, bringing with them different beliefs, technologies and stories. The largest island on Thailand’s Andaman coast, Phuket was a critical site for tin mining, timber and agriculture through the colonial era. In the mid-1980s, its economy pivoted from extractive industries to the tourism that prevails today. In 2015, it became the first city in Southeast Asia to be named a UNESCO City of Gastronomy.
Rather than postcards of a languid tropical paradise, Eternal [Kalpa] proposes a multiplicity of tempos, cycles and timelines, inspired by the dynamic interplay—and fraught interdependence—between humans, non-humans, and the places they inhabit. Artists, architects, designers, performers, ecologists and other researchers have been gathering in Phuket to learn from its environments and hear about its complex histories. In dialogue with park rangers, musicians and dancers, storytellers, free-divers, geckos, rubber trees, textile producers, herb merchants, shrine deities, mangrove roots and sea grasses, mine deposits, migrant workers, hospitality experts, pearl farmers, beach scavengers and more, the biennale will amplify the manifold rhythms of the island, from the quotidian to the cosmic.
Activating a range of historic, post-industrial and civic venues, and Phuket’s stunning natural environments, 50 new commissions will be realised in partnership with art institutions, government agencies and private foundations from around the world. Amongst the new productions is a series of special outdoor ‘Timepieces’, artistic propositions conceived with the support of local partners to enhance and animate everyday public spaces.
The list of participating artists includes: Aleksandra Domanović, Alex Monteith, Maree Sheehan & Apiwat Thongyoun, Andrew Thomas Huang, Ampannee Satoh, Anuwat Apimukmongkon, Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook, Ariane Sutthavong, Ayoung Kim, bani haykal, Chantana Tiprachart, Chatpong Chuenrudeemol & Eakapob Huangthanapan, Doloh Chetae, Eiji Sumi, Haig Aivazian, Ibrahim Mahama, Imhathai Suwatthanasilp, Kamol Phaosavasdi, Kite, Koneksi Tamalanrea, Lek Kiatsirikajorn, Luana Vitra, Megan Cope, Melati Suryodarmo, Minnette de Silva, Mochu & Merve Ertufan, Nathalie Muchamad, Nirmala Dutt, Niwat Manatpiyalert, Noémie Goudal, Nolan Oswald Dennis, Oat Montien, Oliver Laric, Pauline Curnier Jardin & Feel Good Cooperative, Pitupong Chaowakul, Pratchaya Phinthong, Riar Rizaldi, Robert Zhao Renhui, Rossella Biscotti, Rungruang Sittirerk, Ryue Nishizawa, Santi Lawrachawee, Saroot Supasuthivech, Serene Hui, Supapong Laodheerasiri, Supitcha Tovivich,Speedy Grandma, Taiki Sakpisit, Taloi Havini, Taeko Tomiyama, Thuy Tien Nguyen, TOQA, Tsai Ming-Liang, Tun Win Aung & Wah Nu, Wilawan Wiangthong, Woraphob Tantinantakul, Wu Chi-Yu, Wu Tsang, Yim Maline, Zhao Yao and Zheng Mahler. (Names in bold indicate new commissions for Thailand Biennale Phuket.) The complete list of participants, together with an exciting transdisciplinary public programme, will be announced soon.
Eternal [Kalpa] is conceived and realised by Artistic Directors Arin Rungjang and David Teh, and Curators Hera Chan and Marisa Phandharakrajadej.
