BAM!: 'Isarn Boy' is back, Hawaii's hippy commune revisited

As the year draws to an end most of the capital’s galleries and artists will be glad to have survived an extremely economically cautious and consequently relatively unproductive 12 months. That said, signs of a global recovery are on the horizon and there is growing optimism towards a more artistically buoyant 2010. 

As a sign of the year to come there are some very cool exhibitions on this month to close out 2009. Bangkok Art Map (BAM!) published every month and distributed free in Bangkok, shares its top picks for December.

Isarn Boy Soi 4, December 11-24

In a brief three years young artist Maitree Siriboon has already made an impact upon the local art scene. Known domestically for his curatorial presence working with Bangkok’s Whitespace Gallery, 26-year-old Maitree’s latest work “Isarn Boy Soi 4,” is an extension of themes explored in last year’s “Isarn Boy Dream.”

"In Isarn Boy Soi 4," Maitree further examines the relationship between Bangkok’s migrant Isarn workforce and the foreigners who intersect and influence their lives with a new body of studio-based photographs titled after Silom Soi 4, a nightlife strip popular with Bangkok’s gay community.

Whitespace Gallery, open Tuesday-Friday, 1pm-7pm. Saturday-Sunday, 11:30am-8pm. Lido Bldg 2F, 260 Siam Square 3, BTS: Siam. Tel +66 (0)2 252 2900

Image by American pop artist Alan Berg

The Art of Marie Schem & Alan Berg, until mid-January

Set within the elegant  surrounds of the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit's "Library," this exhibition pairs French portrait painter Marie Schem with American pop artist Alan Berg. Hung between the rows of tomes, Schem’s vibrant portraits stare at the viewer in uniform expression, with the background detailing indicating the mood of each work. Berg’s playful silkscreen prints interlace readily identifiable Pop references as he looks toward the cult of celebrity.    

Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit, 250 Sukhumvit Road. Tel +66 (0)2 649 8888

Twist and Shout, until January 10

Part of the Mekong-Japan Exchange Year 2009, the Japan Foundation brings together 17 established and emerging Japanese artists for this pop-inspired exhibition at the Bangkok Art and Culture Center. Highlighting the influence of genres such as manga and anime, as well as other Japanese subculture trends, the exhibition features paintings, sculptures, videos and photographs.

Organizers hope the exhibition will succeed in betraying the conventional view of Japanese contemporary culture, and, hence, prompt Thai perceptions on Japan to be renewed.

10am-9pm, BACC, BTS: National Stadium. tel. +66 (0)2 214 6630

Photo from Camp Taylor series, by John Wehrheim

Camp Taylor, December 15 to January 16

Departing from their regular focus toward Himalayan art and culture, Serindia’s latest exhibition takes viewers back to the free spirited days of the late sixties and seventies with a photographic exhibition capturing life in the Hawaii hippy commune of Camp Taylor. Established by Elizabeth Taylor’s brother, Howard, the camp’s eight-year existence drew notoriety for its drug friendly alternate lifestyle, which drew photographer John Wehrheim to document the back-to-nature life there.

11am-8pm, Tuesday to Sunday. OP Garden 4, 6 Soi Charoen Krung 36, units 3101, 3201. Tel +66 (0)2 238 6410

Golden Tiger/Hidden Monkey, until February 28

Whether considered superstitious mumbo-jumbo or deep-rooted traditional beliefs with universal implications, horoscopes and astrological signs have long been a part of our daily lives. In Asia, and Thailand, emphasis is placed upon the dictates of Feng Shui and cosmological markers as evident in the collection of traditional Thai paintings of the late silk entrepreneur Jim Thompson. To invoke contemporary discourse, artists, designers and animators come together at the Jim Thompson Art Centre to examine the continuing relevance of the zodiac and Feng Shui to modern living.    

From "Deep Desire," by Pachcharapong Meesilp

Deep Desire, December 8 to January 15

Continuing to source talented young artists straight from art school, Ardel gives its latest exposure is to Pachcharapong Meesilp, a recent graduate from Silpakorn University. His slick realistic self-portraits are slathered in an oozing layer of syrupy substance that could allude to sexual pleasure but is also an analogy to greed, desire, excess, and, by implication, ultimate suffering.

Open daily, 10am-7pm. Resident One Property Co Ltd, 2F DOB Building, 318 Rama IV Road, MRT: Hualumphong. Tel +66 (0)85 482 3566 

Open daily, 9am-5pm. Soi Kasemsan 2, opposite the National Stadium, Pathumwan (diagonally across from MBK to the stadium). Tel +66 (0)2 216 7368