Apichatpong Weerasethakul's 'A Minor History' exhibition explores Thai political trauma through film and installation
At the 100 Tonson Foundation in Bangkok, Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul unveiled 'A Minor History,' a two-part exhibition. The first segment showcased a three-channel video installation featuring footage from his journey through Isaan, with narration by poet-activist Mek Krung Fah, alluding to the 2018 murder of dissidents. The second part, titled 'Beautiful Things,' included six photographs from the 2020-2021 protests in Bangkok, complemented by paintings from Natanon Senjit and a sculpture by Methagod. Weerasethakul's 2021 film 'Memoria' delves into similar subjects, inspired by the youth-led protest movement in Thailand, despite his previous opposition to filmmaking in the country. 'A Minor History, Part ii: Beautiful Things' was exhibited until April 10.
Key facts
- Apichatpong Weerasethakul's exhibition 'A Minor History' was presented at 100 Tonson Foundation in Bangkok
- The exhibition referenced the 2018 discovery of two murdered Thai anti-establishment dissidents in the Mekong River
- Weerasethakul collaborated with poet-activist Mek Krung Fah and performance artist Teerawat 'Ka-Ge' Mulvilai
- The filmmaker's feature 'Memoria' (2021) stars Tilda Swinton and is set in Bogotá, Colombia
- Thailand's youth-led protest movement in 2020-2021 motivated Weerasethakul's recent work
- The installation 'Silence' (2021) commemorated the 6 October 1976 massacre at Thammasat University
- Weerasethakul stopped making feature films in Thailand in 2015 due to state censorship
- The exhibition included works by artists Natanon Senjit and Methagod
Entities
Artists
- Apichatpong Weerasethakul
- Tilda Swinton
- Mek Krung Fah
- Teerawat 'Ka-Ge' Mulvilai
- Natanon Senjit
- Methagod
- Khrua In-Khong
- Jiddu Krishnamurti
- Payut Ngaokrachang
- Steven Spielberg
- Ray Bradbury
Institutions
- 100 Tonson Foundation
- Asia Culture Center
- Maielie gallery
- Thammasat University
- B-Floor theatre troupe
Locations
- Bangkok
- Thailand
- Isaan
- Mekong River
- Kalasin province
- Bogotá
- Colombia
- Gwangju
- Khon Kaen
- Chiang Mai