Phichai Kaewvichit's photography shows Bangkok's landscape in an unconventional light. While many believe the city's unruly landscape and towering skyscrapers to be an eyesore, Phichai's work, which is displayed at a gallery, highlights an urban landscape with houses and buildings built in symmetrical order. In his photos, the city is full of buildings painted in a myriad of colour palettes.
So, those who visit the "Accidentally Professional Exhibition" assume that photographer Phichai might have an artistic background.
However, Phichai never went to an art school. When hearing jargon from the art world, like "minimalism", his face reveals confusion.
The reality is that the 43-year-old is an amateur photographer who works full-time as a motorcycle taxi driver in Bangkok.
For over 20 years, he has had to ride on the busy and polluted streets of Bangkok, a job in which he has encountered many different kinds of people.
day job: Phichai Kaewvichit, worked as a motorcycle taxi driver for over 20 years before trying photography as a hobby. He sold his old motorcycle for 12,000 baht to buy a digital camera.
"So I started asking myself: 'Is this all you can do with your life?' Just driving a motorcycle taxi which lets you earn enough money to buy dinner, go back home, watch a soap opera, go to bed and wake up in order to do the same thing again and again?" Pichai told the Bangkok Post.
Phichai is one of around 98,000 motorcycle taxi drivers working in Bangkok. His motorcycle taxi queue is located in front of the Asia Hotel on Ratchawithi Road, a bustling area of the city.
"Most people are tired of Bangkok, whether it be the people, the traffic, or the pollution. We are also influenced by the negative portrayal of Bangkok provided by the media," he said.
"When you listen to the news, what kind of news do you hear most often -- good or bad? The answer is bad news, right? Because bad news always sells better than good news, we are fed only with negative things until our views towards Bangkok are also narrowed down to 'Bangkok is so freaking boring' or 'Bangkok is unbearable'."
However, Phichai chooses not to see the ugly side.
"I like to think that there is beauty everywhere and within everything. It lies within the lines of the stairs, within the shape of the buildings, and within the shadow on the streets on which people step every day. When I look at it that way, Bangkok just becomes a huge playground for me. To me, Bangkok is a rather cool place," Pichai said.
Born in Phayao to a family of poor farmers, Pichai followed his parents to Bangkok who came looking for work during the real estate boom of the 1990s.
At that time, the mission of farmers who had moved to the city was to work on construction sites, with some of them bringing their kids along.
Phichai Kaewvichit, 43-year-old motorcycle taxi rider and amateur photographer has his photos displayed at the "Accidentally Professional Exhibiton" held at Sipa Bhirasri's Place, held until the end of this month, 31 March. The gallery locates on 153 Ratchathewi Road in Dusit District in Bangkok.
In Bangkok, Pichai went to school at Prathom 6, an elementary school, but later had to quit his education in order to help his father collect rubbish to sell.
He said he had wanted to pursue higher education. Yet, his plans were always derailed.
At 22, Pichai became a father after his girlfriend fell pregnant.
As a result, Pichai needed money to take care of his child and family. He started by delivering vegetables in the market and later working as a motorcycle taxi driver to support his family.
Bangkok can be derelict for many. But for Phichai, landscape of the city, building structures have their own beauty.
The photography only came a few years ago, one day when he brought his customer, who turned out to be famous photographer Supachai Ketkaroonkul, to install photos at a gallery.
The gallery was located in a small alley in a community but the old building had a quaint charm. He said that before this he never had any idea that an old community could be so beautiful.
So, Phichai started taking photos by using his smartphone.
When he felt confident in his work, he decided to sell his old motorcycle for 12,000 baht so that he could buy a compact digital camera.
He used mobile applications to retouch his photos and post them on his social media accounts. One day, his work caught the eyes of a curator, and he was invited to showcase his photos at an exhibition.
Phichai never expected that his work would be shown in an art exhibition.
"But as long as I'm still able to take a photo and some people still appreciate my art, I'm happy and that's all there is to it," he said.
"Whenever I look at art, I feel peace. It's like I'm in a trance. However, I don't have enough time or money to engage in painting or sculpting. This is where photography comes in. It's the most relatable form of art that I could afford."
"When I take a photo, I don't think. I just have to feel the moment and focus on myself. I don't plan beforehand. I don't plan that I need to take a photo of this location because it's so beautiful. I like a spontaneous adventure where I just carry my camera around and take a picture of whatever I feel like."
Even so, he has separated his art from his daily routine. While working, he has never stopped in the middle of his driving just to take a photo. He usually takes photos between 10am-noon, when the trade goes slow. He also never wears his motorcycle taxi jacket while taking photos.
"When I take photos, I completely forget everything. I forget my burdens, about my occupation. I'm completely myself. Everything just becomes so wonderful for me.
"Art, in the form of taking photographs is just a form of a journey.
"As of right now, my only goal is to take people to new places in a sense of emotions and experiences. When I drive a motorcycle taxi, I may take a few people to their destinations, but with photography, I may be able to take a hundred, maybe a thousand people to touch new feelings they've never felt before."
He also believes that individuality is the most important thing in people's lives and should not be limited by the norms of society.
For him, people, despite their social, racial and economic backgrounds are alike in many aspects.
The amateurish photographer often spends free time during slow trade to take photos. Pichai never wear the motorcycle taxi jacket while taking photos.
"Art is in every single one of us. It just depends on how you express yourself. What forms or frequencies you choose to express it. A businessman and even a motorcycle driver have their own art, but their art comes in a form of managing or thrill-seeking," said Phichai, who has now received his high school diploma and also earned a bachelor's degree in humanities at Ramkhamhaeng Open University.
"Whatever you do and whoever you are, the most important thing is that you can express yourself in what you do and you're happy with it. For me, that's all that matters."