Showing 11 - 20 of 31
Miss(ed) Opportunity
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 15/03/2020
» The rise of synth-pop darling Claire Boucher, aka Grimes, has been a fascinating one.
Off the leash
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 20/10/2019
» "Dogs whine to communicate their physical, mental and emotional states..." At first glance, Dogwhine's artist bio reads like the opening to a freshman's college essay. Then, out of the blue, what initially appears to be a direct quote from the dictionary turns into a sly jab at the absurd prohibition on political gatherings of five or more people imposed by the junta: "Not all whines are created equally. Sometimes dogs gather to whine in group. When they come together more than five, they often get chased or taken away." Like hip-hop firebrands Rap Against Dictatorship who brought us the brilliant anti-junta Prathet Ku Mee (What's My Country Got), this Bangkok five-piece are unapologetically political from the outset.
Ry Cooder returns to gospel roots
Life, John Clewley, Published on 16/10/2018
» American guitarist Ry Cooder released his first studio album for six years recently. The Prodigal Son (Fantasy Recordings, USA) has put aside his more politically engaged music -- as heard on a series of albums, Chavez Ravine (2005), My Name Is Buddy (2007), Pull Up Some Dust And Sit Down (2011) and Election Special (2012) and returned to a more-gospel oriented sound that he created on his early albums.
Art and coup: Four years and counting
Life, Ariane Kupferman-Sutthavong, Published on 23/05/2018
» Tuesday marked the fourth anniversary of the May 2014 coup d'etat. While it continues to underpin the political landscape, the coup also sparked an unprecedented rise in Thai artworks with political messages. A new political art exhibition took place almost every month since May 2014.
Contemporary mission
Life, Published on 10/04/2018
» A few months prior to its 10th anniversary, the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC) made a major announcement: a new director. As of March 1, Pawit Mahasarinand has taken the helm of the city's main art venue and the largest public-funded art centre in the country, a surprising choice to many, though an entirely welcoming one.
Pushing boundaries
Life, Apipar Norapoompipat, Published on 21/06/2017
» Who knew that appreciating art could be so physically exhausting?
The outspoken monk
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 24/05/2017
» At the start The Venerable W., we see the firebrand Myanmar monk Ashin Wirathu speaking to the camera, calmly and casually. He talks about the African catfish, a creature that "grows fast, breeds a lot and is violent". The punchline is not totally unpredictable: "Muslims are like that."
Art as a political act
Life, Kaona Pongpipat, Published on 18/03/2016
» It was with a feeling of nausea and disgust that Chiang Mai-based artist Mit Jai Inn spent one month working on his new series of abstract paintings, now on display and part of the exhibition "Wett" at Gallery Ver at N22 in Bangkok. Mit's series is entitled "Junta Monochrome" -- obviously not for the works themselves -- for the art space has exploded with every colour imaginable; rather the title conveys the artist's contempt for the reality outside: a junta-ruled country where things are either black or white, where if you're not a khon dee (good person), the artist says, you are inevitably the bad guy.
Rich tapestry of Thai society
Life, Pimrapee Thungkasemvathana, Published on 02/02/2015
» All things considered, the 14 stories in the collection translated by Marcel Barang read like a list of social issues a Thai should be aware of: participating in last year's protests without genuine understanding and interest; having an affair with someone of an opposing political colour; the death of red-shirt poet Mai Nueng; violence in the South; hilltop villages; the move from local farms to factory farming. And Buddhism.
Life cut short, Keeping mum, Hard times, In recovery
News, Published on 18/05/2014
» Dome’s dreams come to tragic end