CRACK News&Reviews

Click the following links to see news and reviews of
CRACK: the magic clay can do.

Art4D blog (news)
Free Form magazine (news)
Art4D magazine (review in Thai)
art4d.com (review in English)

Meet all who cracked with Mor Mor

click to CRACK, click to CRACK, click to CRACK

See all the magic clay can do

Click on the image to view all 11 pieces by 11 artists/designers
who showed in CRACK: the magic clay can do. For further details on each artist or designer, just choose his/her name below and click.

• Anuchai Sripoocharoentong
• Be Takerng Pattanopas
• Emsophian Benjametha
• Pim Sudhikam
• Pitt Martliam
• Pornphun Suthiprapa
• Pornprasert Yamazaki
• Pratya Raktabutr
• Nimawadee Krainara
• Tikumporn Engchaun
• Udom Udomsrianan

CRACK: opening night

CRACK: the magic clay can do was opened by one of Thailand most renowned ceramic artists, Surojana Setabutra. We would like to note that on that same night there was the opening of the National Gallery sculpture exhibition, which included her own major pieces; and Surojana was supposed to be there. But she accepted our invitation, came to CRACK, and gave us a wonderfully sincere and encouraging opening speech.



above: Guests gathered for Surojana Setabutra's opening speech; behind them was Pitt Matrliam's installation.
left: Surojana Setabutra with CRACK's accidental curator, Be Pattanopas. Surojana spent more than a few hours at the show. She kindly told us she would be deligthed if there are more of CRACKs in the future.














above: Guests were invited to put on surgical rubber gloves and hold Pim Sudhikam's Streptococcus smoke-fired ceramic cocoons, which made subtle cracking noises.

below left: Wasinburi Supanichworapaj of the internationally renowned Tao Hong Tai Pottery(in black shirt), CRACK's main supporter, talking to Pratya Raktabutr and Udom Udomsrianan while sitting on Udom's pieces.






above right: Anuchai Sripoocharoentong's pieces was one of the most favourite in the show, obviously.

below left: Emsophian Benjametha with his wall piece made of raw paper clay.







above right: Design students from Chulalongkorn University with Tikumpon Engchuan's translucent porcelain inspired by sea creatures.














above: Varavit Siripaktr of Panpuri (sitting) with Pornphun Suthiprapa's Imperfect Falling.

left: Nimawadee Krainara and her cracked clay imbedded with memories.




above: A viewe, mesmerised by Pitt Matrliam's installation.
below left: CRACK viewed from Pornprasert Yamasaki's installation, which comprised of ceramic mortars he patiently acquired from the Northeast of Thailand. A commentary on the inevitable influence of capitalism and globalization even in the remotest region of the country.


above right: Julia Kingston-Davies of Raffle Design Institute exploring Be Pattanopas's Erogenous Landscape.

B4 we cracked our CRACK

The space we used for CRACK: the magic clay can do was a warehouse/loft space, which had nevery been intended for exhibition purposes, let alone ever been used before. The space was virtually empty. Lots of windows and small bare brick walls with no ceilings, just bare roof structures and insulations. The venue administrators did not provide us with any exhibition facilities, esp. plinths or white walls, except for a small one at the centre of the space.






















But we saw that as an opportunity to make our curatorial statement - a criticism towards most established galleries and museum in Thailand.

We wanted the arts to occupy this space by rejecting all references to vitrine white-cube formal gallery cliché. The obvious solutions were to place objects on the bare concrete floor, or to suspend them from the ceiling.

We have to admit that CRACK: the magic clay can do had a very humble beginning to the point that we were worried that we wouldn't have enough work to hold the show together in such an enormous space. We were wrong, however.








It turned out that we nearly run out of space.
Thanks to all of our participating artists/designers, who, as the opening came closers and closers, had more and more energy to inject into their works and the whole show. Their works expanded both in terms of the sizes and numbers they wanted to show, as well as the spaces their works required.

Anyway, we went through all that. And the outcome stunned viewers who came to see the show, on the opening night, and after. An unused space of Baan Silom was magically transformed into a very cool space.

Well, despite the soaring heat of Bangkok's Valentine's night!!!
To see more images before we cracked CRACK, click here.