Showing 1 - 9 of 9
An iconic Christmas
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 04/12/2025
» It was around 8.30pm on Thursday when I braved the cold to catch a spectacular display at Selfridges London. Hovering above the Queen of Time, Tinker Bell sprinkled an over-100m trail of pixie dust that traversed across the purple-and-blue facade, with a magical tune from Cinderella. It culminated with the 11m-tall Disney Castle, the largest installation to feature on the store for over half a century, in the corner.
Rebirth in exile
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 30/06/2025
» On a poster, Phnom Penh glows dimly from afar. Flickering on the other side of the Mekong River, rows of buildings dissolve, blending with water and sky in the blue hour of twilight. This photo and a whisper are an invitation to stargaze the city glimmering in the distance.
A story told through art
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 28/05/2025
» As a bustling neighbourhood in Singapore's East Coast, Bedok Town Square has experienced a kaleidoscopic turn of events. No sooner had it hosted a polling station earlier this month than it conjured a transient art space, inviting everybody to find their place in an ever-shifting world at the Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA).
Thailand's Big Brother is upping the ante
Oped, Thana Boonlert, Published on 06/08/2022
» In the late 18th century, British philosopher Jeremy Bentham visited his younger brother, Samuel, in Russia, who arranged unskilled factory workers in a circle so that he could supervise them. Inspired by this principle, Bentham developed "the panopticon", an inspection tower surrounded by cells. Its uniqueness was that it enabled a watchman to monitor prisoners without them knowing they were being watched.
The power of images
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 19/04/2022
» A herd of cows comes across an unlikely object -- a red and white director's chair -- on the Trans-Canada Highway in rural Saskatchewan. On the other side of the world, their friends wander on a rubber plantation on the outskirts of Trang. As the cows walk towards the object, a father and son from Canada capture the moment.
Symbols of eternal love
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 01/03/2022
» 'We teach them humans are not friends, but foes," said Tanet Uttaraviset, an animal scientist at Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo, while opening the door of the nursery for young sarus cranes. Inside this leafy circular enclosure is a green puddle where his words echo the conflict between humans and tall waterbirds under threat of extinction.
Will liberal arts perish much like razed Scala?
Oped, Thana Boonlert, Published on 13/11/2021
» Surrounded by a tall fence, the once-grand Scala, the last stand-alone cinema in Bangkok -- a quasi Cinema Paradiso for movie buffs -- was razed to rubble and thus no more.
Paying respects to sailors, a century later
News, Thana Boonlert, Published on 02/01/2020
» There are many ways to pay homage to departed souls. Yet one that stood the test of time took place late last month at Soosan Farang (Cemetery for Westerners), formally known as the Bangkok Protestant Cemetery on Charoen Krung Road.
The spirit of Bengal
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 13/06/2019
» As the first rays of light shone on the Bangladeshi morning, the new dawn brought hope and optimism. I got out of the van and walked down the street in Dhaka with other international journalists, the ground still wet after the rains of the previous night.