PRAWET'S HIDDEN HISTORY

An exhibition at BACC pop up sees eight artists explore the identity of the Baan Thang Kwai Muslim community

- STORY: SUWITCHA CHAIYONG

Situated at Seacon Square Srinakarin, BACC pop up is the second branch of the Bangkok Art & Culture Centre on Rama I Road.

In order to create the exhibition "Melting Map", curator Patticha Thitithammaporn and co-curator Supanuth Fungthanakul researched the area around BACC pop up and worked with eight artists - The Basement, Hassakorn Hirunsirichoke, Krittanun Tantraporn, Kwanchai Lichaikul, Marisa Srijunpleang, Pietro Lo Casto, Seo Jihui and Teawin Tan.

Patticha explained that she had noticed rapid changes in the area and thus the team wanted to study the area's history to understand its cultural assets.

"We studied communities around Khlong Prawet Buri Rom and worked with the community called Baan Thang Kwai [Buffalo Route Village]. This community is located far from BACC pop up, around 8km and next to Khlong Prawet Buri Rom. There are 13 mosques in Baan Thang Kwai, which means the area has a large Muslim community. It raised the question when and how did they come to be here?" Patticha said.

According to Supanuth, there is a large Muslim community in the Prawet area. However, the curators chose to work with the Baan Thang Kwai community because it is the oldest and has been around for 120 years. In the past, they were farmers, but as the city expanded with roads and housing estates, their occupations changed accordingly.

The exhibition title "Melting Map" refers to an attempt to erase lines on physical maps and present characteristics of the community.

"The purpose of the exhibition is to present the identity of Muslims in Bangkok. When we talk about Muslims, many people assume they are from the three southern border provinces, but they actually are Muslims from Bangkok. People in the community trust one another. They have unique cultural features and maintain their traditional rituals which makes their community solid," said Patticha.