Leaving Ratchathewi station on the skytrain to Siam takes you past a small park on the left, whose walls host an outdoor gallery of vibrant graffiti. The small public space is called Chaloem La, a name echoed by a new art house set to open right next to the park.
The old neighbourhood of Ratchathewi is developing into a hip destination, with vintage clothing stores taking up residence in century-old houses and baristas decking out their back-alley shophouses with vinyl records and retro knick-knacks.
After living in the neighbourhood for two years, art-loving Brit Paul Wilkinson, together with his wife Pumarin, decided it's the perfect area to open their new contemporary art space, Chaloem La Art House.
(Photo courtesy of Chaloem La Art House)
"We wanted to open a place that gives unknown artists and emerging artists quality exhibition space, where we can promote them and help their careers," Wilkinson says. "We're not a sterile white box like a lot of galleries, we want to have some kind of street art personality. We're coming from the grassroots up, from the artists rather than collectors."
Wilkinson's mission is to discover emerging artists at the start of their career and to give art lovers a chance to snap up their early works before prices go stratospheric.
Rather than austere white walls, the gallery has murals from Thai, Balinese and British artists sitting alongside the exhibition pieces and Wilkinson isn't limiting the space to only fine art. Future plans include installations alongside poetry and music performances, all rooted in a punk sensibility.
For the opening, Chaloem La has chosen a group of young Silpakorn University Fine Arts students, including Phatnaree Boonmee, recent winner of Thailand's Most Promising Artist Award. The work has a diverse and interesting range of styles, taking viewers on a journey from rainy urban portraits to gothic rural landscapes and ending with the outer space meditations of the most well-known of the artists, Siwakorn Srikampa, aka Mr. Lone Cloud.
(Photo courtesy of Chaloem La Art House)
The opening night of the exhibition is this Saturday. Chaloem La Art House is a one-minute walk from Ratchathewi BTS station, Exit 2, or less than five minutes from Siam Discovery. Turn down the side of the graffiti park onto Soi Phetchaburi 18 and the art house is opposite the park entrance.
For more details, visit Chaloem La's pages on Facebook and Instagram.
